


Chaotic Hearts

by EsseR3xinaLives



Series: Second Life Stories [3]
Category: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon
Genre: Angst, Drama, Explicit Language, F/F, F/M, One sided Mina/Usagi, Post-Canon, Sailor V References, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-17
Updated: 2019-10-05
Packaged: 2020-01-15 17:21:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 36,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18503542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EsseR3xinaLives/pseuds/EsseR3xinaLives
Summary: The fight was over.  Peace had been restored, and everyone could go back to their everyday lives.  So why did it feel like they needed each other now more than ever?And why did it feel like they were pushing each other apart?A post-canon story set about a year after the Stars arc in the manga.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I didn't think I would be getting to this so soon, but I guess I just couldn't stay away from Sailor Moon for too long. Anyways, this fic follows along the similar themes as the previous Sailor Moon fics I wrote, but they aren't necessary to know what's going on here. Also, this fic is a lot darker than the others and has lots of angst violence and moments of domestic violence, so please use your discretion when reading. Anyways, thanks for checking this out and please kudos, comment and mostly enjoy!

Everything was perfect.

The bells chiming in the background, her friends cheering and laughing from the side and the person she loved most had his arm linked in hers as she leaned against his shoulder.

She couldn’t have planned a more perfect wedding.

“Usako,” his warm deep voice drew her in as his soft smile shone down on her.  “Our chariot awaits.”

She couldn’t suppress the blush that crossed her face.  It didn’t matter that they’d been together for four years, or that they had known each other in another lifetime, every moment they were together he was able to make her fall in love all over again.  She took a shaky breath as she tried to give her most Usagi-like smile before responding just as enthusiastically.  "Then what are we waiting for?"

He turned towards the double doors as her eyes followed.  Light bled through the church doors as they walked towards them, the infinite possibilities of a life together flooding her mind.

She couldn’t have been happier.

“Did you really think I’d just throw my life away for you again?”

“Whuh-” the blonde looked around, suddenly finding herself alone in absolute darkness.  “Mamo-chan?  Where are you?”

“He’s right here princess.”

She turned towards the sinister voice, whipping her head around as distress painted itself across her face.  “Beryl?!”

The woman in question gave a sinister chuckle, snickering to the side as her long nails caressed Mamoru’s opposite shoulder.  “But of-”

“Don’t touch him!”

She reached for her moon rod as she shouted at the fiend.  “Silver Moon- kyaaa!”

A sudden gust blew her off her feet as she rolled back, picking herself up onto her hands and knees as she looked towards the two.  “Mamo-chan?”

He simply looked down at her with cold eyes, uncaring of the pain that was welling within the blonde and the mirth rising from the woman beside him as she turned her gaze towards the blonde.  “Well, what else did you expect?  After all he’s the prince of Earth, sworn to protect his planet from all threats.”

“But I’m not a threat!  I’d never do anything to hurt anyone!”

“And yet you’re the reason he died!”

“I… no, I…” She paused, unable to find the reasoning that could’ve convinced her- convinced Beryl that it wasn’t her fault.  “You- You’re the one who attacked him!”

“And yet, what other choice did I have?!”  She shouted as she strode slowly towards Usagi before Endymion faded away to take Beryl's place.  “I was neglecting my duties to my people!”

“But, Endymion please-!”

“I never should’ve let myself get manipulated by a selfish little brat like you.”  He unsheathed his sword, pointing it towards the moon princess who could only watch through bleary eyes as tears stained her cheeks.  “If I destroy you, the war that destroyed both our people will never happen.”

She sniffed, letting her hand find Mamoru’s on the hilt of his blade as she tried to look at his eyes with as much resolve as her teary blue would allow.  “If you think it’s for the best.”

She closed her eyes, using both her hands to wrap around the hands that held a blade to her heart before the sickening squelch of metal tearing flesh erupted through the darkness as she thrust the blade into her.

“Well done my pet.”

She shuddered.  That was Beryl’s words on _her_ ear.  Beryl’s long nails caressing _her_ jaw.  But why?

The blonde opened her eyes, turning her head upward to try to understand before absolute horror washed over her face.  “Mamo-chan?”

Terror shone in his blue eyes as he gagged on the blood that threatened to choke him before Usagi realized that it was only her hands on the hilt of the sword now buried into his chest.  “Usa... ko?”

“No…”  She shouted as she released the blade, causing the man to fall to the ground as the woman cackled at the blonde’s panicked reaction as she held her love close.

“MAMO-CHAN!!!”

She awoke.

With a startled gasp and she rushed to an upright position and looked around the room that was decorated with an abundant amount of rabbit designs painted across her walls and decorating her bed covers.  She was in _her_ room, not the pure white marble of a kingdom both distant and destroyed.  She wiped her eyes furiously as she rushed to the phone she kept on her desk as she hurriedly dialed in numbers.  Nine.  Seven.  Eight.  Five.  Five.  Five.  Eight.  Seven.  Four-

SLAM

The phone crashed back onto the desk as the blonde leaned against the desk and cried.  She couldn’t call him right now!  He was busy with school and who even knows what time it was over there in America!  But who else could she call?  Who else would be willing to be there and listen and

Mina

She immediately rose back towards the desk as she swiped the phone back as her fingers instinctively typed in numbers all too familiar as she listened to the rings and begged to whatever higher power existed that her friend would answer.

She couldn’t be alone right now.

-

She felt so alone right now.

This was very unlike her.  Everyone else was enjoying the wedding, whether they were chatting at the bar, dancing on the floor or enjoying the _many_ confections the lovely bride would have insisted they have available.  Everyone was having fun.

Everyone except for _her._

And she knew it was out of character.  She knew that, of all places, this should be the time where she really showed the other guests what a good time really looked like, but instead all she could do was stand in the corner and glower at the tall dark-haired man that was dancing with the princess.  With the princess that she would convince into devious pranks against a certain uptight shrine maiden who needed to learn to let her hair down a little more.  The princess that she would run off with to the arcade as they would hide behind the games from a certain bookworm who would try to drag them back to their studies.  The princess she would break into a certain brunette’s house in order to raid their refrigerator.  The princess who would cry into her pillow anytime she felt that her soon to be husband was being distant as she would rub her princess’ back and comfort her through her trials.  The princess that she was always fighting beside, always protecting to ensure that they could all return back to their kingdom with their heads held high.

And  _he_ was dancing with _her_ princess.

“Is this seat ta-?”

“Yesss…”

The hiss came low and venomous as a lighthearted chuckle rose from above her.  “You must really be miserable if you’re not even going to see who’s talking to you.”

A soft growl escaped her as she clenched the tablecloth for just a moment before rising.  “Listen you-!”

A gasp escaped her, all breath leaving her body as she looked into the familiar blue eyes that were lit with a cocky smirk.  “Ace?!”

“Oh, so you remember me now.  How nice.”

“Shut it!”  The blonde pulled him in by the tie to glare into his eyes as she whispered loudly and threateningly.  “What are you doing here?!  If you dare hurt Usa-”

“Still only thinking of your princess, are you?”  He asked nonchalantly as he removed himself from her grip to fix his tie.  “And here I was thinking now, more than ever, you would understand the pain you forced me to endure.”

“What are you talking about?”

He chuckled again, eyes closed with a light smile as if the question were the most ridiculous thing he’d ever heard uttered.  “So, you remember me but you don’t remember the last time we met?  I suppose I should have guessed as much since you so easily forgot an entire lifetime before this.”

The senshi captain groaned.  “Will you stop talking in riddles and tell me why you’re here?!”

“I’m here because you’re here, obviously.”  He stated with a serious, almost predatory expression.  “Where else would I be?”

“Scattered to the winds like the rest of the Dark Kingdom bozos we vaporized.”

A sharp, biting laugh escaped the man as he took a step forward.  “Yeah, I suppose that would be the likely answer, but I defied death to be with you once.  Does it seem so unlikely I would do it again?”

“I…” she backed up, pressed against the wall as the man continued to move dangerously close to her before raising a hand to the top of her head.

“That bow makes you look very feminine.”

“So?  What of it?”

His eyes darkened as they fell back to the matching blue eyes of a fellow Venusian.  “Do you remember when you first donned that ribbon?  You wore it to try to win the affections of a boy who went to your school.”

Slender fingers dug into the stone of the church as she worked up a glare.  “Yeah, and he was nothing more than a pawn in your stupid schemes!”

“But you didn't care about that.  At least, you didn't at first.  You had the chance to ignore what he truly was.  To follow him blissfully ignorant of the fact he wasn’t even a real person.  To continue to chase love until you found someone you would truly settle with, but instead you destroyed him and on his deathbed you donned the red ribbon.”

“And what does any of that matter!  I’m just doing my duty!”

“Because that's all that matters to you Venus!  You see, you don’t wear that ribbon because a man you loved told you you’d look better with it.  When you destroyed Higashi you took the red thread that destined us to be together and wove it into the ribbon you wear now to forever tie you to your duty, to your _princess_.”

Her jaw clenched as her fingers fumbled for the crescent boomerang that she kept hidden before offering him a glare.  Just a little _closer_.  Just a _tiny_ bit to wait for the right opportunity as he leaned dangerously close with his hand cupping her jaw as she could feel his breath on her lips.

“You took my princess away from me Venus, so I’ll stake my life on ensuring you never get to have yours.”

She wrapped an arm around his neck before twisting out of the corner, using her arm to slam him against the wall and thrusting her crescent boomerang into his heart only for it to clang against the wall.

Dammit!  Of course he’d teleport!

“Where are you Ace!”

“Where else would I be?’

She turned to the cocky voice that floated from the altar, a sadistic gleam lit his eyes as he leaned into Usagi, mere inches away from stealing her wedding kiss.

“DON’T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!!!”

She threw the boomerang that sliced across Ace’s neck, a look of shock etching his face before his face morphed into sickening glee.  He faded, dissipating into dust that floated in the air as a man with a slashed neck fell to the ground.

“MAMO-CHAN!!!”

The blonde froze.  Mamoru was bleeding from the neck on the floor in front of the altar as his blank expression stared upward at the moon princess who was sobbing profusely above him, _begging_ him to be okay.

And Mina could do nothing but watch.

She was frozen.  Watching as the guests all ran screaming from the atrocity that had suddenly befallen them, pillars coming undone as the church began to crumble around them.  She simply watched her princess, tears forming in her eyes as she tried to reach out.  “Usagi?”

The princess turned away, as if spotting something to the side.  She grabbed the bloodied object and rose it to her chest as Mina immediately realized what was about to happen.

“USAGI! NO!!!”

SLISH

“Usagi!”

She breathed heavily, looking around the dark room before immediately moving to wipe her eyes.  Damn these tears, why were they even coming?  It’s not like something bad really happened, it was just a dream.

It was just a dream.

RIIIIING RIIIIING

“Ahm, Mina, phone-ah nyum.”

She rolled her eyes at Artemis’s sleepy mumbles as she got out of bed.  Who would possibly be calling at this hour of the night?  Didn’t they realize it was a school night?!

She moved to the phone before she froze, staring at the numbers that flashed across the screen of her phone’s caller id screen.

“Mina, tha phone…”

She shook her head before ducking under the table to unplug it.  She _really_ didn’t need that keeping her up all night.  She gave an exaggerated yawn as she moved back to bed.

“Who wazit Mina?”

“Dunno.  It was probably for mom or dad.”

The cat hummed in what sounded like skepticism, but after she heard the light snores of the cat she relaxed slightly and fell back into her bed.  She didn’t want to try to lie her way out of explaining that she _did_ recognize the number.  That she knew _exactly_ who was calling her right now, but after that dream she just couldn’t bring herself to answer.  Her fingers dug into the pillow as she clenched her eyes shut and tried to hold back the tears.  She should’ve answered, she’s supposed to be _there_ for her, but she just couldn’t do it right now.

She was just too weak.

-

Why was she so _weak?_

She tore her gaze from the floor, breathing heavily as she glared down the shadowy minion that stood in her way.  They had to get back to the castle, but Makoto and Rei ran on ahead of her, knocking any and every enemy out of their path as if their existence could only shatter in their presence.

She stood up shakily, gripping the longsword in both of her hands as her grip tore at the callouses that riveted her palms.  She clenched her jaw, ignoring the pain as she screamed, rushing forward with her blade hilt positioned over her shoulder.  The shadowy figure smirked, watching intently as she twirled to swing the sword down onto him.

SHIING

WHOMP

She fell back to the ground, blue hair falling in her face as she gasped for air and slammed her fist into the ground.  Dammit!  Why couldn’t she defeat him?!

The loud sound of footsteps approached her as she rose to meet his gaze, a sinister smirk crossing his face as he raised his blade to bring down on her.  She closed her eyes as she covered her head.

This was the end.

SHING

Silence surrounded them as slender fingers pulled tighter at blue hair.

Did he… Did he kill her?

She looked up, a major gash was cut into the man’s chest as he fell to his knees.  His hands gingerly reached for his chest as his unbelieving eyes flickered between the wound and the blue eyes that watched with uncertainty.

“I-”

His head rolled off, the bluenette turning away and closing her eyes as she heard the lifeless thump of a body with no will left.  She slowly opened her eyes, unsure if the breath she released was out of relief or fear.

“Mina?”

The blonde didn’t answer, simply standing there, looking down at the bluenette with a blood smeared gaze.  She flicked the sword in her hand not necessarily clearing any blood from the blade as much as showing the ease with which she could wield it.

“Mina… what’s going on?”

“Isn’t it obvious?”

She rose to her feet, wincing at the soreness of her body as she tried to keep herself balanced.  “I- I’m sorry-”

“Shut up!”  The blonde screamed, causing Ami to wince as hardened blue turned towards her.   “This is war Ami!  Your apologies aren’t going to help us, only your strength, which by the looks of it you don’t really have any to offer.”

“Mina?”

“This is war.  The weak get left behind.”

"What?"  The bluenette breathed out as the blonde turned to walk away.  "But, Mina!  Wait-”

“If you’re worth anything I’ll see you on the other side.  If not then at least make your death worth something.”

“Mina, stop!”

But she walked on, through the dark shadows that seemed to consume her as the bluenette ran to follow only to trip in the crowd.  The sounds of battle rang in her ears as she tried desperately to find her way through before getting kicked in the side and sent rolling before a man with wavy blonde hair in a ponytail picked her up by the collar.

“Well, well, well.  What have we here?”

She gave him a glare as she pulled a dagger from her side hilt and plunged it forward only for the man to grab her wrist and twist her arm as a sickening snap matched with a bloodcurdling scream ripped across the battlefield.  He tossed her forward as she rolled across the ground, arm bent in an unnatural position as he strode slowly towards her.  She tried to get back up but the man grabbed her by the chin to force her gaze into his as he sneered.

“Such a pathetic human,” he spat as she struggled within his grip that caused him to snicker.  “It’s no wonder your friends abandoned you.”

“They wouldn’t do that,” she choked out between tears.  “They’re my friends.”

“There are no friends in war.”  He growled lowly as she watched his face morph into that of Venus.

“And war has no place for the weak.”

She fell to the ground as the blonde unsheathed her sword and swung down on the bluenette as she cried.

_Help!!!_

She gasped.  Her eyes flew open as she stared at the bookcase on the far wall of her room.  She wiped her eyes before rising from her spot.  She was in bed.

Of course she was in bed.

She immediately moved to the lamp on her nightstand as she hopped off her bed and looked over the book bindings, trying to find something that could help her get her mind off of-

_There are no friends in war_

She shuddered as she gripped the bookcase.  It didn’t matter if that were true or not, they were in a time of peace, there was no reason to get flustered.

_And war is no place for the weak_

She didn’t care.  Didn’t need to worry about those things.  The fighting was over, it was done!

_At least make your death worth something_

She slammed a fist against the bookshelf.  That’s really what they thought of her, wasn’t it?  Weak.  Pathetic.

Useless.

She pushed against the bookshelf as she moved to the most spacious area in the room as she planked her body before lowering down.  _One._

She rose up again, gritting her teeth as she struggled against the strain determined to persevere.  She would show them.  She could be strong!  She could do this! _Two-_

She crashed.  Colliding to the floor as the tears flowed freely and she clutched her head tightly.  That was pathetic!  She couldn’t even do _two_ push-ups!  No wonder the others thought she was weak!  No wonder they thought she was useless!

 _It didn’t matter,_ she thought to herself as she got in position to try again.  She would get stronger.  She would be stronger than _all_ of them!

Even if it killed her.

-

She swore this woman might kill her.

She always thought it was ridiculous when people would say they were so happy they could die, but now she was wondering if it had some merit.

After all, how could one possibly live to be this happy.

“Anything you need sweetheart?”

A soft smile escaped her as she leaned back into the strong body that enveloped her, relishing in the strong arms that could hold her for lifetimes.  “You can let me get back to work so that we don’t starve.”

“Mmm, I should’ve guessed that would be your answer.” The brunette answered as she nuzzled into the firebrand’s neck earning a soft giggle.  “I can’t help it though.  I get bored when you don’t let me do the cooking.”

“And this is why you need to learn to relax,” she stated as she twisted in the brunette’s arms to face her, allowing her hands to rest on Makoto’s jawline.

“Maybe I need some motivation,” the brunette casually stated with a smirk as the ravenette rolled her eyes.  She melted further into the embrace, letting their lips meet as the strong arms around her tightened and she just… let go.

She wasn’t even sure what was coming over her, but she _needed_ her.  Needed to feel the brunette’s form surround her.  Needed to tangle her fingers in her lovely brown hair.

She moved her hands to the brunette’s shoulders, hugging her tightly digging her nails into her back.

She needed to make Makoto hers.

KYAA

The ravenette took a step back, flicking the blood from her long fingers as the beaten brunette hung limply against the bindings.  The heavy breaths echoed around the stone room as the ravenette walked slowly towards the roaring fire, the soft whimpers of the strong brunette cutting through the flame’s roars.

“Rei-chan…”

Said person raised her head, not bothering to make eye contact as the brunette tried to gag out the rest of her statement.  “Rei-chan… what are you doing?”

“What anyone with real strength does,” she answered with a smirk crossing her lips as she turned back to the nigh unrecognizable face of the brunette.  “I’m doing as I please.”

“Might makes right…  right?”

The question hung in the air as the ravenette continued to prod the fire.  The brunette licked her lips, bloody and bruised from the firebrand’s abuse.  “If you really wanted to test that theory, you’d fight me fair.”

A biting laugh escaped the ravenette as she pulled out a branding iron, inspecting the design that glowed on the end.  “All’s fair in love and war.”

She walked towards the brunette, pulling her hair that caused her to groan.  “And as the victor I get to claim my spoils.”

She held up the branding iron as green eyes immediately turned frightened.  “Please, Rei-chan.  Just stop.”

“Shhhhh,” the ravenette hushed as she pressed her lips gently against the broken ones.  “Mercy isn’t something you should beg for.”

“Rei-chan?”

The ravenette slapped her, letting the ring echo before raising the branding iron right above the brunette’s heart.

“It’s something you should scream for.”

She thrust the iron down, the sound of sizzling flesh being drowned out by a desperate cry.

“STOP!!!!!”

She awoke with a gasp.

Seated upright, heart pounding she immediately turned to seek her partner’s comfort but then decided against it.

She couldn’t face her after what she’d just dreamed.

She snuck out of bed, tears streaming down her eyes as she padded quickly to the kitchen, tearing the notepad on the refrigerator off as she found a pen in one of the drawers and began to scribble furiously.

_I’m so-_

The letter caught fire.  She cursed as she frantically tried to wave it out before having to stomp it on the ground.  What was _wrong_ with her?  Why did her powers suddenly activate like that?

She shook her head.  It didn’t matter what or why, she just needed to leave _now_.  She scribbled a final message on the notepad before grabbing her shoes and running out the door.  A breeze passed through causing her to shudder as she quickly ran towards the only refuge she could think of taking.  She found the familiar steps, gliding over them as she had thousands of times before as she arrived at the familiar Shinto Shrine that she had grown up in.  She rushed through the door and hurried into her room, finding a duffel bag and shoving everything that was within arms reach into it as the tears continued to stream down.

“Hello?  Who’s there?!”

She froze in place.  Of course, her desperate flight would wake him up!  But, she couldn’t worry about that, she had to leave!  To a place where she wouldn’t be able to hurt anybody.

To a place Makoto would never find her.

“Come on out you rascal!”

“Grandpa, it’s me!”

The light flickered on as his old weary gaze took in the sight of his granddaughter, hair and nightgown completely disheveled as tears were streaming down her face.

“It… it’s just me Grandpa.”

“Rei-chan…”

He stood still for a moment, taking in the sight of his granddaughter before he slowly stepped forward.

“Rei-chan, wh-what happened?  Are you okay?”

Tears flooded her eyes as she shook her head, covering her face to try to hide the shame.  “No, I… I’m not okay… I don’t think I can be…”

“Rei-chan.” He moved to hug her, letting her tears stain his fuku as he held her close.  “What happened?  Please, tell me.”

“I can’t.”  She sobbed as she clutched the cloth beneath her fingers.  “I can’t tell you, but I can’t go back.  I can’t stay here!”

“Why not?  Rei-chan, did-” he broke the embrace, holding Rei by the shoulders as he stared deeply into her amethyst orbs.  “Did she hurt you?”

Her face contorted as she tried to fight the tears while her head wobbled in a gesture that wasn’t sure if it should be a nod or a shake before she simply cried into her hands again.  “I- I can’t- I just can’t stay here grandpa!  I can’t let her find me here!”

“I’ll call your father right away.  Don’t worry Rei-chan, everything will be fine.  Just… just try to relax… please?”

She wiped her eyes as she nodded her head quickly, the man leaving immediately as she sat with nothing but her thoughts in the candlelight.

The light that was so similar to the firelight in her dreams.

_STOP!!!_

She winced.  Why would she ever think of that?  Why would she ever _revel_ in that?  That sadistic desire to have full control over another person, where did that feeling even come from?  And why Makoto?

Why was this happening to her?

“Rei-chan.”

She looked towards the wizened man, weary, sleep-deprived eyes looking at her with such concern.

“I just got off the phone with your father.  He said he’ll have the guest room available for you.”

She sniffed and nodded before turning back to her grandfather.  “Okay.”

“Here, let me help you with the packing.”

She could only hum as the man moved to help fold her clothes neatly and pack them away as she watched with growing uncertainty.  She didn’t like the idea of moving back in with her father, and why was she being given the guest room?  What did he do to her old bedroom that would make it unavailable?  Would she really be better off staying with her father for the night?

She shook the thoughts from her head as she averted her gaze to try to focus on anything else.  It didn’t matter if it was better for her or not.

It was better for Makoto.

And it didn’t matter if she was protecting Makoto from the enemy or from herself she swore she would protect her.

She would do everything in her power to keep her safe.

-

She would do everything to keep them safe.

She didn’t care if it came at the cost of her life.  Her fists were swollen with the likelihood of cracked knuckles from the force of which she fought.  She had multiple lacerations across her body as the blood slowly oozed out, as if trying desperately to remain within her veins but unable to completely overpower their nature to bleed.  She had a cut by her eye and another slashing her cheek as bruises discolored her entire being.  But she couldn’t stop now, oh no.  There was no time to complain.

After all, more were coming.

It didn’t matter what they were, the shadowy figures that looked like the husks of humans with claws at their fingers that slashed at the foliage surrounding them.  No, it didn’t matter what they were.

She would destroy them all to keep her friends safe.

With a battle cry she ran forward, sidestepping a slash as she used her elbow to ram it’s head into the ground as it dissipated to dust while a monster saw her back open and slashed at it.

She groaned lightly, but ignored the injury, ignored the blood dripping down her torn white sailor fuku as she simply twisted to send a high kick to the monster as it ripped through the creature, forcing them to collapse against a nearby tree before dissipating.  The shriek of another monster turned her attention towards it as a high slash came boring down on her and she lifted her forearm.  The claws connected, digging into her skin as Makoto’s blood decorated its fingers.  She snarled before using the injured appendage to grab the arm of the monster, twirling under it before tearing the limb from the shoulder socket, causing a horrendous shriek from the monster as it fell before she stomped her foot onto its head.

She was ready to finish this.

She focused her energy, lightning crackling around her fingers and eyes as she glared down the enemies surrounding her.  She stood up, channeling all the energy within her to build up the electricity before she let it loose with a shout.

_Supreme Thunder_

A pillar of lightning exploded from her, branching out to eliminate everything in her radius as dust and ash and smoke replaced the green lively surroundings she was immersed in.  She stood tall, breathing heavily as her eyes panned the surrounding area, refusing to give herself a moment of reprieve.

After all, rest could only come after victory or death and victory wasn’t earned yet.

Not quite yet.

“You really are quite the nuisance, aren’t you?”

She turned around, a man with long brown hair brandishing a longsword glowered at her as she simply returned to a defensive stance.

“I simply fight.”  Was her response.  “And if you wish to hurt my friends, then you suffer the same.”

“You’re the one who’s going to suffer!”

He ran forward, bringing his sword to his side to begin with a thrust as the brunette ran to meet him.

SQUILCH

SLAM

His neck spun with a sickening crack as he fell lifelessly to the ground while the brunette fell to one knee with both hands on the hilt of his sword before she thrust it out.  Blood poured out of her side as she watched the blood flood from inside her with a humorless laugh.

It was over.

She fell to her knees, as a light hand rested against the flowing blood that escaped from her wound.

This was it.

“MAKO-CHAN!!!”

She heard the shout and felt familiar arms wrap around her as she fell backward to look up into tear-filled amethyst eyes as she offered up a smile.  “Hey Rei-chan.”

“Mako-chan!  You need to get up!  We have to get you to the infirmary now!”

The ravenette tried to pull the brunette up as she simply laughed.  “You may as well save your energy Rei-chan.  We both know I won’t make it.”

“NO!!!”

The sobs were heavy as the firebrand cried into Makoto’s chest and hugged her tightly.  “It can’t end like this!  You can’t die!”

“Rei-chan-”

“I WON’T LET YOU DIE!!!”

A shaky hand raised to the ravenette’s cheek as Makoto tilted the firebrand’s eyes towards her own.  “If you live then it’s worth it.”

The ravenette took her hand as green eyes slowly closed.

“It's all... worth it...”

…

It was dark when she next opened her eyes, shrouded in a dark purple mist that felt sinister and ominous.  She rose to her feet before walking through the shroud.

“Hello!... Is anyone out there?!”

“Who would you want to find?”

The brunette gasped as she whipped her head towards where she heard the voice.  “Rei-chan?  Is that you?”

“Yes Mako-chan,” the voice came softly as the ravenette stepped through the mist.  “I’m here.”

The brunette laughed as she rushed to hug her lover before her arms fazed right through the woman and she turned around in shock.  “Rei-chan?  What- What’s going on?”

“Isn’t it obvious?”

The brunette quirked a brow at Rei who hadn’t turned from her spot as she stared blankly ahead.  “Rei-cha-?”

“We’re dead…”

Makoto’s eyes widened at the admission before a nervous chuckle escaped her.  “No, you’re… this isn’t real right?  I mean, I’m just dreaming or something right?  I mean-“

“Mako-chan.”

“You can’t be dead!”  The brunette shouted as she crumpled slightly.  “I didn’t give my life protecting you just for you to die.”

“Well that’s just the problem, isn’t it?”

The brunette paused as she fought the tears threatening to escape her as amethyst turned blearily towards her and the mist shifted, revealing the scene of a dark forest.  The sinister mist dressed the trees to leave it looking menacing while in the middle of the scene was a blood-drenched sailor senshi who continued to cry long into the night.  The brunette immediately recognized Rei, moving toward her before an invisible force kept her from going forward as she rested her hand against the pane.  It crushed her seeing her lover in so much distress, but it was better this way.  If one of them had to die it was better it was her.  Protecting people was just all her life was meant for.

And the life of a warrior was to protect the one’s who mattered, even if it costs their life.

She let her hand slide slowly down the surface as she turned around before the sound of rustling turned her attention back to the scene.  “Rei-chan?”

She watched intently on the scene, but the woman hadn’t moved.  Green eyes squinted through the darkness, trying to find the source of the noise before noticing a dark figure in the trees behind the ravenette who pulled out a sword.

“Rei-chan!  Behind you!”

The ravenette turned quickly only to be met with a kick to her chin as she was sent skidding across the grass.

“Rei-chan!!!”

“That’s the real problem.”

The brunette ignored her lover’s words as she focused on the menacing shadow that stalked towards the firebrand.  He stomped on her chest to keep her pinned before raising his sword.

“That’s the reality of this situation.”

Tears began to fall as she shook her head of the truth and pounded against the invisible wall, watching the firebrand struggle against his weight.  “Rei-chan!  Don’t give up!  I’ll save you!”

The blade swiftly lowered as time seemed to still.

“You can’t save anyone when you’re dead.”

“REI-CHAN!!!!”

She awoke with a gasp before turning quickly towards the other side of her bed.  “Rei-chan!... Rei… Rei-chan?”

The woman in question wasn’t there as panic built in the brunette thoughts while she tried to calm herself down.  It was fine that Rei-chan wasn’t in bed.  She might’ve just had to go to the restroom.  Yeah, she should check there first.

“Rei-chan?”

She turned on the light and looked around.  Of course Rei-chan wasn’t there.  Why would she leave the door wide open and the light off if she was?  But that didn’t answer the question as to where was she.

“Rei-chan?  Where are you?”

She stepped on something that crinkled under her feet before she turned on the light to find a half-burned piece of paper with the beginnings of a message looking like it was about to be made.  “I’m so-”

It didn’t go any further than that as the brunette knitted her brow at the missing message.  “Rei-chan?”

She turned towards the table where the notepad was left with a single word hurriedly scrawled in Rei’s distinguished kanji.

“Goodbye.”

“Rei-chan, whah-”

She began breathing quickly as she put the burnt paper next to it with tears threatening to escape her.

“No…”

She rushed over to grab her coat and shoes before she rushed out the door and streaked through the town with tears flowing.  Rei-chan couldn’t be gone!  She wouldn’t have left like that!  She had to find her and see what she did wrong, how she could make it right!

She rushed up the shrine steps and knocked furiously on the front door.  “Hino-san!  Please, open up!  I’m worried about Rei-chan!”

She panicked as she turned to the side of the shrine to look under the plant where Rei kept her spare key and-

It wasn’t there.

She dug her fingers into her hair before she rushed back to the door pounding furiously.  “Hino-san!  Please!  Is Rei-chan, okay?!”

She punched the door as the tears flowed freely with her shriek.

“PLEASE JUST ANSWER ME!!!”

She continued to sob as she turned her back against the door while she cried into her arms and buried herself in her knees.  Where was everyone?  Why was Rei-chan gone?  What did she do wrong?

She shook her head as the tears froze on her face and the rain continued to poor.  It shouldn’t have been like this.  She’s so sorry she missed the signs.  That she didn’t do better.  But how was she supposed to know?

After all, she thought everything was perfect.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I just wanted to say thank you all so much for reading this fic! I know it's probably not as popular since I'm not advertising ships, but I also don't want to feel like I'm limiting myself or giving away too much of the story. So anyways, thanks again for the views and kudos and I hope you enjoy this next chapter!

She had truly hoped that things would’ve been better in the morning.

Well, she supposed they _were_ better, but that didn’t mean that they were any good.  She just wanted everything to be alright.

She had to find Mina.

It didn’t matter what was going on in their lives, Mina was always there for her and able to make her smile in the deepest despair.

So… where was she now?

She tried to intercept her in between classes, but the blonde always seemed to leave just before her, weaving through the crowds as the odangoed blonde tried desperately to catch up only to get scolded for being late.  The teachers never believed her when she said that it was important, because they just never understood how necessary it could be to need to talk to someone.  She couldn’t even find Mina during lunch!  At least they had the same homeroom class.  If she couldn’t catch her at any other moment then she’d just have to wait until homeroom and-

And she wasn’t there!

The odangoed blonde waited, staring intently at the door awaiting her friend to fill the seat next to her.

It never happened.

“Alright class, let’s get started-”

“WAIT!!!”

The class stared at the odangoed blonde in confusion as the teacher simply gave a sigh.  “Yes Tsukino-san?  Is there something you needed to hold up the _entire class_ for?”

“Uh…” she paused, looking at everyone’s inquiring faces before she turned her gaze downward and blushed furiously.  “I… I’m sorry, it’s just that… Mina-P isn’t here and-”

“Aino-san has been excused from homeroom today to help the volleyball team practice for their game tonight.  Now, if there are no more interruptions…”

The blonde gave a soft gulp before sitting back down.  The sound of mumbles wafted around her while the teacher gave instruction, but she couldn’t pay attention to any of it.  She just needed Mina to be-

“Can I use the hall pass?!”

“Tsukino-san!  Go stand in the hall!”

The students whispered and snickered as the odangoed blonde walked stoutly towards the door, waiting for it to close before she noticed the teacher returning to her lesson.  And then she booked it.

She ran, rushing down halls and past classrooms, ignoring the teachers and adults that would try to stop her as she set her sights on the gymnasium doors.

“Mina-P!!!”

The blonde immediately turned at the sound of her name before a scowl was etched across her face.  “Usagi!  What are you doing here?!  Get to class!”

“No!”  Usagi shouted defiantly as she stood tall.  “You’ve been avoiding me all day and I want to know why!”

“I haven’t been avoiding you Usagi-chan.  You’re overthinking things.”

“Then what’s with the honorific then?  You haven’t used one for my name in at least two years now!”

The ribboned blonde visibly cringed as she tried to turn her attention to the volleyball in her hands.  “Usagi, I don’t have time for this.  I’ve got a game to prepare for and  _you_ need to get back to class.”

“I’m not leaving until you say why you’re avoiding me!”

“I’m not avoiding you Usagi-chan!”

“But you are!  I’ve been waiting for you after every class and you’re gone!  I looked for you during lunch and you were gone!  I waited for you in homeroom and… and you…”

Tears suddenly began to flow as the odangoed blonde fell to her knees and sobbed into her hands as her friend simply watched in uncertain silence.  Eventually a balding man came into the gym.

“You!  What were you doing running through the halls earlier?!”

“I… I…”

“I’m sorry Hideyaki-sensei,” the athlete apologized indifferently as she turned back to the court.  “I tried to tell her she had to get back to class.”

“Mina-P…”

The man reached for the blonde’s arm as he pulled her up.  “Come on you!  You’re going to the office for this.”

“Wha- wait!  Mina-P!  Please just tell me!”

“There’s nothing I have to say to you about Usagi-chan.  Get back to class.”

Tears filled blue eyes as she watched the athlete throw the volleyball up and slam it down on the other side of the court, completely ignoring that the odangoed blonde was still there.  Mina grabbed another volleyball, continuing to practice as if nothing was happening while every collision the volleyball made with the floor felt like a shot to the heart.  Usagi just couldn’t take it anymore.

She had to get out.

She shook herself out of the man’s grip as a final spike set her off running, away from the gym, away from the school.  She just needed to get _away_.

She ran until she was out of energy, plenty away from the school, but nowhere near away from the pain.  She’d just have to think of something to help remedy it.

She took a look around, it figures that she would find herself in the Jûban Shopping District.  She wiped her tears as she headed towards the Crown Arcade, letting the sliding doors greet her as she looked around.   It was empty, probably because school was still in session, so she had her choice of whatever game she wanted to play.  The only problem was she didn’t know what she wanted to play.  Sure, her first idea would’ve been the Sailor V game, but after what happened with Mina that was out.  She could play Battle Lap… the racing game that Mina introduced her to right before they met Haruka.  That sounded like an equally bad idea.  And then there was Lovely Fight and Lunar Rescue, two other games Minako had introduced her to.  And the crane game-

She groaned before she just took a seat at the game nearest her.  It was Puzzle Blast, a game that she would’ve never played because it sounded too difficult, but at least it didn’t remind her of Minako.  She haphazardly matched pieces to clear lines, falling into the mind numbing trap of video games before she heard the sound of large machinery being moved.

“Furu-chan?”

She looked around, but the arcade worker was nowhere to be seen, she turned towards the Sailor V game and-

The console closed shut.  Someone had just entered the secret base underneath.  The blonde rushed over and typed in the passcode before sneaking down the stairs slowly.  She would want the element of surprise on her side in case it was Minako.  That way, there’d be no avoiding the question when Usagi asked again, Mina would have to give her a straight answer.

She continued to sneak down the stairs, careful to make sure her shoes didn’t make too much noise before the sound of exaggerated groaning could be heard.  Curiosity overwhelmed the blonde as she quickly peeked past the wall to see someone using the weight set Makoto had bought for the base.  Of course, Usagi was certain that whoever was lifting weights couldn’t have been Makoto.  She looked a bit shorter and Makoto wouldn’t have struggled so much to lift just the bar.  She walked out from her perch as she called out to the person.  “Hello?”

The bar immediately wobbled as the blonde rushed to help steady it before recognizing the blue eyes beneath her.  “Ami?”

The bluenette groaned as she returned the bar to it’s resting spot before getting up abruptly to shout.  “Usagi-chan!  What are you doing?!  Don’t you know it’s dangerous to startle someone like that?!”

The blonde took a step back, completely unprepared for the admonishment as blue eyes held a kind of fury she’d never seen before.  “I… I’m sorry, I just… it looked like you might’ve lost balance and-”

“And nothing!  I had the situation completely under control Usagi-chan!”

“But… but I can help!”  The blonde tried to argue back.  “Isn’t it dangerous to work out like that alone?  I can help you!”

“I don’t need or want your help Usagi-chan!  I am more than capable of taking care of myself!”

“I- I know, I just-”

“JUST LEAVE!!!”

Tears returned to the blue eyes as the blonde tried to wrap her head around what was happening.  “But… Ami-chan.”

“Don’t make me tell you twice.”

The blonde shook her head as she rushed out of the command center.  Since when was Ami so mean?  Why was everyone acting so strange all of a sudden?  Where could she go to talk to someone now?

…

Well… there was always Rei-chan.

She gave a soft sniffle as she wiped her eyes.  Yeah, a trip to the shrine might be just what she needed, and Rei should be there at this time.  Even though she had more-or-less moved in with Makoto she kept her job at the shrine.  Maybe she could find an answer to why her heart was so restless there.

She walked out of the arcade and towards the bus stop, nostalgia washing over her as she thought back to the time she first met Rei.  She was playing games at the Game Corner, just like any other day, but that day was different.  That was the day right after Ami had awoken as a sailor guardian.  The first day her and Ami officially hung out as friends.  That day Ami had taught her more techniques on how to beat the Sailor V game.  That day Ami invited her to cram school where Usagi vehemently declined, but still offered to ride the bus with her.

That day Ami told her about the really beautiful girl in the TA Academy uniform.

That day she met Rei.

It felt so wrong.  Riding the bus without Ami.  Not having a friend to talk to who would point her to the loveliest woman on the bus that Usagi would immediately be infatuated with.  The woman that Usagi would then follow to the shrine where said lovely woman would attack her, but she didn’t think too much of it because that wasn’t what was really bothering her now.

What bothered her was that Ami was the whole reason she met Rei, but Ami wasn’t with her right now.

She took in a deep breath before running up the steps.  She had never really spent much time with Rei alone, but she still considered her a dear friend, even if she could be a bit mean at times.   No matter what happened, she knew she could trust Rei with her life.

She got to the top of the steps.  It was a ghost town around the shrine.  All the stalls were closed which may have been why there were no customers, but what about patrons?  And where was Rei-chan to sweep the steps or greet the faithful?  What was happening?

She approached the shrine, reading the sign that it was closed do to a personal event.  Usagi began to panic as she knocked furiously on the door.

“Rei-chan!  Hey, Rei-chan!  Please open up!”

The door slid open slightly as the blonde was met with the glaring face of Rei’s grandfather.

“Oh, Hino-san!”  She quickly bowed before looking back at him with worried eyes.  “I’m so sorry to bother you!  I was just wondering where Rei-chan was.   I haven’t seen her around here and I’m worried about her.  Is she okay?  What happened?”

“I don’t owe you any answers.”

The blonde shook her head in confusion before she noticed the closing door and rushed to stop it.  “Wuh-wait!”

She grabbed the door, forcing it open as she rushed her words.  “Please Hino-san!  Where is Rei-chan?!  What’s happened here?!”

“I’m not telling you anything!  You’ll just tell that behemoth friend of yours if I do!!!”

The blonde stumbled back a moment as confusion riddled her face.  “Behemoth?”

“You didn’t see my granddaughter this morning, I had never seen her so distressed!  And I don’t know what you girls did to her, but I’ll tell you the same thing I told your friend.  She’s somewhere where you’ll never find her.  You won’t be able to hurt her again!”

The door slammed shut as the blonde stared at it in disbelief.

This couldn’t be real.

This couldn’t be real!  She didn’t dream up one nightmare just to wake up in another!

She couldn’t have lost everyone!

…

Well there was still someone she had to talk to.

She walked back to the bus stop, anxious about the next stop that she was going to make, but also knowing that she couldn’t not try.  Of course, she wasn’t sure if she had seen Makoto at school today, what if she was gone to?

She shook her head at the thought as the bus approached.  It didn’t matter whether she was there or not, she would have to try.  No matter what she would always be there for her friends.

…

If only one of them would be there for her right now.

She pouted out the window as she tried to keep the tears from falling.  What would she do if Makoto wasn’t there?  Even worse, what would she do if Makoto drove her away?

The bus pulled up at her stop as she got out in front of the apartment building.  Guess she was about to find out.

She walked into the building, found the familiar door and began to knock softly.

“Mako-chan?  Mako-chan, can you hear me?”

Her calls were answered with silence as she stared at the wooden door, not wanting to accept the silence, but not having anything else to take either.  She let her hand rest against the wooden door before she fumbled with her keys.

“Mako-chan, I don’t know if you’re in there or not, but I’m coming in, okay?”

She used her spare key to unlock the door as she hesitantly stepped inside.

It looked empty.

She turned her head.  The kitchen looked completely unused, so maybe Mako-chan got extra cleaning in or something.  That would explain why the living room looked absolutely untouched.  Or maybe she missed breakfast and just hasn’t come back home from school yet.  That would actually seem more likely since Mako-chan was never home that often.  Of course, she was usually with Rei, hitting up the juice bar, the arcade or helping out with the shrine.  Where would she be if Rei-chan wasn’t here?

Would she have left with Rei?  But where to?

“Mako-chan?”

There was the sound of rustling in the main bedroom that the blonde rushed to.  Was Makoto in bed?  But it was still light out?  Why would she be-?

“Mako-chan, are you in here?”

Bleary green eyes turned towards the blonde that looked swollen red, whether it was of tears, inability to sleep or too much sleep Usagi couldn’t tell.  “Mako-chan?”

The brunette turned under the blankets as she mumbled.

“Go away Usagi.”

“Mako-chan…” the blonde walked to the other side of the bed, trying to find a way to get the brunette’s attention.  “Mako-chan, what happened?  Why are you still in bed?”

“And why are you ignoring me?”  The brunette groaned as she hid her head under her pillow.  “I said to go away.”

“But you look like you’re upset about something,” the blonde tried to argue as she knelt next to the bed.  “Please just talk to me Mako-chan.  What’s going on?  What happened to Rei-ch-“

“HOW SHOULD I KNOW?!?!”

The blonde jumped back at the sudden outburst of the brunette as she leaned back against the wall.  “I- I thought she would’ve told you!  I’m sorry, I didn’t know!”

“Well do you wanna know?  Will that make you happy?!”

“I- I mean-”

“Because I wanna know too, Usagi-chan!!!”  The brunette’s shout echoed off the walls as tears began to fall freely down her face.  “I wanna know why I woke up this morning and she wasn’t here.  I wanna know why the only sign I had that she was here was a note that said goodbye.  I wanna know why her spare key wasn’t in the outdoor plant like it always was.  I wanna know why I woke up later, outside the shrine, to Rei’s grandpa chasing me off with a broom.  I wanna know why he told me I couldn’t see Rei-chan anymore.  I mean, he told me I’d never hurt her again, but I don’t know what I did!  What did I do wrong?!?!”

She cried heavily into her palms as the blonde rushed onto the bed and gingerly tried to pull the hands away from her face.  “Mako-chan, I’m so sorr-”

“I don’t care Usagi-chan!”

“But-”

“JUST LEAVE!!!”

Tears began to escape from blue orbs before she ran out.  She just couldn’t take it!  Being rejected all over again, by all of her closest friends.

Who was she supposed to rely on now?

She shook her head as she ran down the street.  She really just wanted to get home, throw the covers over her head and not bother with the world for the rest of eternity.  When did life seem so cruel?  She threw open the door.

“Usagi?!  Is that you?!”

“Not now Mom.”

“Oh don’t you ‘not now Mom’ me young lady!”  The woman shouted back as she grabbed Usagi’s arm.  “I just got a call from your school.  What were you doing disrupting class like that!  Not only that, but instead of standing out in the hall like you were supposed to you ran off and-!”

“I KNOW WHAT I DID MOM!!!”

The woman released Usagi’s arm, she had never heard the blonde raise her voice to her like that as tear-filled blue eyes turned slowly to her.  “I- I’m sorry mom, I just… I just need to be alone right now.”

She ran up the stairs, not waiting for her mother’s response as she ran right past the familiar black cat that had arrived after her shout.  She rushed to her room and slammed the door as she flopped on her bed and sobbed.  Where did things go wrong?  Did she do something wrong?!

“Usagi?”

She wiped her tears as she cracked the door open for Luna to rush in before shutting it again and sitting against it.

“Usagi, what’s wrong?”

The blonde wiped her tears as she shook her head.  “I’m sorry Luna, it’s just that… no one’s talking to me,” she gave another sniffle as she put on a brave face.  “I really shouldn’t be such a baby about it, I’m sorry.”

“What do you mean no one’s talking to you?”

The blonde eased out of her curled position as she wiped her eyes.  “I mean, no one’s talking to me.  Mina-P wouldn’t talk to me, Ami-chan gave me the cold shoulder, Rei-chan’s gone and Mako-chan basically threw me out of her apartment…" her arms wrapped tighter around her legs as she hugged herself roughly.  "I feel so alone.”

The black cat’s ears perked.  “What do you mean Rei’s ‘gone?’”

“That’s just what her grandpa said,” the blonde explained as she tried to keep the tears from coming back.  “He just said she was going somewhere where we couldn’t hurt her.  I tried to ask Mako-chan, but…” the blonde shook her head as the memories of the day felt overwhelming.  “She didn’t seem to know either.”

The cat hummed in thought before turning back towards the window.  “That is odd…”

“Yeah… do you think she’s okay?”

“I’m sure Rei’s fine, wherever she is.  Her grandfather would’ve told you if she wasn’t,” the cat deadpanned as she jumped off the bed.  “Have you tried contacting Mamoru?”

“I…” the blonde paused before she turned her head away.  “No… I just... I know he’s so busy with school and… I don’t want to worry him about these things.  It’s probably nothing.”

“If it’s bothering you, then it can’t be nothing.”

The blonde looked up at the cat, a tear escaping her as she offered a sincere smile.  “Thanks Luna.”

“Of course!”  The feline assured.  “I’ll try to see what’s up with the others.  You should give Mamoru a call when you get the chance.”

“Yeah,” the blonde answered with a sigh.  “That sounds good.”

The blonde gave an exaggerated yawn as Luna gave her a comforting smile.  "Maybe bed would be a good idea, you’ve had a long day.”

“Sounds good,” the blonde relented as she quickly changed to flop onto the bed, working hard to convince herself that there was no reason to cry.  After all, there was always tomorrow.

And surely tomorrow would be better.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Welcome back to a new chapter of Chaotic Hearts! I was going to have this posted earlier but ended up going on vacation and figured I'd forego posting till I got back home. Anyways, without further ado, here's chapter three of Chaotic Hearts! Please kudos, comment and enjoy =)

She awoke.  Bolting forward on the bed as she looked out her window to the sight of meteors crashing down upon the world.  She rushed to get out of her room before a meteor crashed through her window.  What was happening?!  Where was Luna?!

She descended down the stairs as quickly as she could before she exited the castle, finding her friends who were all standing right outside and… watching.  None of them seeming concerned that the meteors could land right on top of them.

“Guys?”

They turned around slowly, as if they were so engaged in the carnage that they were hesitant to turn their gazes from it.

“What are you doing here?  Shouldn’t we be doing-?”

“It’s too late for that Usagi-chan.”

The words of the senshi captain came sternly as she walked slowly towards the blonde while Makoto suddenly disappeared in an explosion of flame.

“MAKO-CHAN!!!”

“Don’t worry about her,” the blonde stated solemnly as Rei suddenly burst into flame next.  “This is simply the way things need to be.”

“NO!!!”  Usagi shouted as she tried to reach out to the now dispersing Ami before being grabbed roughly by her best friend.  “Mina, stop!  We can save them!  Just let me go!”

There was a biting laugh before the blonde began to glow.  “You really don’t get it do you?”

“But, Mina-P!”

“You can’t save us Usagi, we’re already gone.”

“MINA!!!”

She bolted forward, looking around the room before breaking down into tears.  Of course, it was another dream.

“Usagi?  Are you okay?”

She turned hurriedly towards the black cat that had one paw on where her knee was under the blankets.  She rushed to wipe the tears as she forced a smile on her face.  “Y-yeah Luna.  I mean, it was just a dream.  Nothing to worry about.”

The cat simply looked on with pitying eyes as the blonde tried desperately to make her smile seem more sincere than what it must have looked in that moment.  “These nightmares have been happening often, haven’t they?”

“No!”  The blonde hurrieldy shouted to allay any concern, but the cat’s skeptical look let the blonde know that she wasn’t going to be fooled.  “Well, not really at least.  It just started yesterday so it’s not too big a deal.”  She gave a soft smile as she began to pet Luna’s head.  “It’s nothing you should worry about.  Besides, I thought you’d be doing patrols during this time.”

“Being here with you seemed more important,” the cat responded as she leaned into the gesture.  “After the way you came home I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Luna, I’m fine, but shouldn’t someone be out there making sure the streets of Tokyo are safe?”

“There’s been no activity recently so I’m certain things are fine.  Besides, I promised you I’d do what I could to help, didn’t I?”

The blonde gave a slight nod before tears threatened to return.  “Thank you, Luna.  Honestly, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“There’s no need for thanks Usagi, it’s what I’m here for,” the cat moved towards the edge of the covers before nudging them with her nose.  “Just try to get some rest.  I’ll be here if you need me.”

“Thank you,” the blonde practically whispered before yawning.  She nestled back into the covers, wrapping herself tightly within them to feel some semblance of comfort as she tried to convince herself everything would be fine.

After all, it’s not like there was anything to worry about.

…

She didn’t think they’d have to worry about it.

Sure, there had been threats to the planet before, but they had always been able to power through.  Always been able to fight back.  Always been able to win.

So, how could they have failed?

She looked around, hands gripping tightly to the space sword as she felt the impending darkness looming before it.

She was the only one left.

She had to fight back!  Avenge her fallen comrades, maybe find a way to bring them back… if that were even possible.

An ear-piercing shriek tore through the city causing the blonde to shudder.  She couldn’t let it intimidate her, she had to be strong!  She could do this, she could fight back!

But... she felt so small.  Felt like a child with no strength.  She couldn't defeat that thing!  What could she possibly-?

“Ruka!”

She felt herself getting pushed as she rolled across the gravel street while a shadowy claw ripped the woman before her to shreds.  “MICHI!!!”

She shakily stood, heading towards the aquanette before a red gaze fell upon her and gave her a devastating smile.  “I’m sorry, was this yours?”

“Don’t-!”  The blonde reached for her sword, why was she so _scared?_   She shouldn’t be so scared, she was a warrior!  She could defeat this monster!

So why couldn’t she move?  Why did her sword feel so heavy?  Why wasn’t she fighting back?!

The monster grabbed her by the neck as she dropped her sword, grasping the large hand as she fought for breath.  The monster sneered in her face, “Well what do you know, a wind child.”

She flailed in its grip as she tried to pry the hand from her neck and reach for her sword while the monster chuckled.  “It’s amusing how you struggle, but I know you’re just planning to run.  After all, that’s all a wind child can do.”

“Ruka…”

She turned her gaze towards the aquanette who was reaching out for her.  “M-Michi?”

“Aw, how sloppy of me.”

The monster dropped Haruka as she struggled for breath.  “Michi?”

“Well little human, I suppose you have a choice now,” the monster said in a low rumbling tone as it stalked closer to Michiru.  “You can run now, or…” it lifted the aquanette who gave a light groan from the contact as she tried to remain conscious enough to glare at the monster.  “You can wait until I’m finished with her to send you to the next life.”

“Ruka…”

The blonde clenched her hands.  She should be getting up and fighting!  But there was no will, no courage to fight back.

And so she ran.  She bolted off as the heartrending laugh of the monster echoed in her ears and the blood-curdling scream rendered her soul.

She awoke with a gasp.  Sitting up in bed and looking around the room she was in before recognizing it and releasing a sigh.  She snuck out, taking extra caution to make sure she didn’t wake Michiru up as she padded across the room and closed the bedroom door.  It was nothing to worry her about and she really didn't feel like having to try to avoid the conversation with a conscious Michiru that she had a dream that she'd abandoned her to be torn apart by some angry shadow monster.  It was just a dream after all, and there was no way she’d ever do that.

Was there?

She shook her head vehemently.  No!  Why was she even thinking that?!  There was no way, why would she think…  She just needed to stop thinking right now.

Vodka… yeah, vodka could help with that.

She headed towards the kitchen and opened the fridge to the half-opened bottle before pouring herself a shot and taking the bottle with her to the table.  Just in case.

She threw down the liquid, no thoughts, just doing right now.  Doing is what she did best.

So why was she so hesitant in her dream?

No, bad thought!  Get another shot to flush it out.

But, it’d happened before, didn’t it?  She had abandoned people before hadn’t she?

No way!  She needed another shot, the thoughts just weren’t going away!  There was no way she’d ever let anyone down, she’d always fight to the end!

Then why was this dream bothering her so badly if it didn’t mean anything?

She threw down the shot glass before she clenched her head.  Why _was_ this bothering her so badly?  Why was she wasting so much time worrying about it?

Why did it feel so real?

She rubbed her eyes, not realizing that tears had been trickling down her cheeks as she looked at her reflection in the window.

_What was happening to her?_

She took another shot of the liquor before getting up.  She couldn’t keep sitting around there, she had to do something, but… she didn’t know what.

But she couldn’t let Michiru know what was going on, she just… couldn’t let her worry.

She grabbed a nearby notepad as she scribbled down a quick message, grabbed her jacket and left.  She pulled her car out of the driveway and just began to ride.  She didn’t know where to and she didn’t really care.

She just had to get away.

-

It was so nice to get away.

The weather was perfect for it, the park was near empty and neither she nor Haruka had any practices or rehearsals set up for the day and just when she thought it couldn't get any better Setsuna offered to take Hotaru to the playground and leave the young couple alone.  The day couldn't have gone better.  Of course, Michiru wasn't so content as to not be suspicious of Setsuna.  There was something about the way Setsuna would dote over Hotaru that made her seem a little… overprotective?  She wasn’t sure.  As much as she loved Hotaru she couldn’t help but feel like Setsuna was truly devoting her life to the child’s well-being while she and Haruka continued to focus on their own.

As if nothing had changed.

“Michi?”  She turned hurriedly towards the blonde who was looking at her with concern.  “Are you okay Michi?”

“Huh, oh!  Yes of course.”  She gave a soft smile before turning back towards the blue sky that lay stretched before them.  “I was just thinking about Hotaru-chan and Setsuna-san.  It’s become a habit I suppose.”

“It really has, you’re hardly able to relax whenever we finally get some time to ourselves.”

“I suppose so…” she turned her eyes down towards the blanket that she was leaning against before turning her gaze back to Haruka.  “Forgive me?”

“Always Michi,” the blonde answered sweetly before pulling out a bottle.  “Wine for you?”

The aquanette released a giggle, “Bringing alcohol to a public park?  You’re such a rebel.”

“Hey, you don’t like me drinking in front of Hotaru so where else am I going to do it?  Besides, what’s date night without a little wine?”

“I suppose I’ll have to let it slide then.”

“That’s more like it!”  The blonde exclaimed before raising his glass.  “Cheers?”

The aquanette let out a light giggle before raising her own glass.  “Cheers.”

They clanked their glasses together before each taking a sip of their drinks, but the aquanette couldn’t help but feel like her drink tasted… off.  Or, maybe it wasn’t the drink.  Maybe it was just that the alcohol was hitting her harder than she thought it would.  She looked back to the blonde who was calling to her, but she couldn’t hear any words as her vision went blurry before she collapsed.

…

“Michi?  Michi, are you okay?”

Her eyes opened as she bolted forward.  “Ruka?!  Ruka, where are you?  Where am I?!”

“Don’t worry Michi I’m right here, and you’re somewhere safe.”

She turned towards the blonde who was transformed into her sailor fuku as she looked around.  She was in what may as well have been a prison since the only exit was a door with bars over the window.  She reached out to the blonde through them as their fingers intertwined.

“Ruka, why am I here?”

“It’s not safe out here.”

She gave the blonde an incredulous look.  “What do you mean it’s not safe?  Why am I in here?”

“There’s no time to explain Michi,” the blonde rushed as she took her hand back.  “I need to get back to the fight, but you’ll be safe here.”

“Wait, Ruka!  What fight?!  Why am I here?!  I should be fighting with you!”

“No!”  The blonde shouted over her shoulder.  “I’ll take care of this, you just wait here till I get back.”

“No, Ruka-!”

The blonde took off as Michiru banged against the door screaming at her.  She couldn’t just leave her here!  She would find a way out!  She would…

She would...

Tears began to well in her eyes as she blinked furiously, wiping away at them as she rose from her covers.  She was in her room.

“Ruka…”

She turned to the empty spot in her bed before feeling the cool sheets next to her.  “Ruka?”

She slowly lifted the covers before lethargically leaving the bed to head towards the door.  “Ruka, are you out here?”

She exited her room, skimming the dark hallway and checking every open door she passed before descending the stairs and crossing the living room floor to head to the kitchen.  Her eyes immediately went to the bottle of vodka that was left on the table with an empty glass next to it.  It appeared Haruka was having some troubles that evening as well.  She grabbed the bottle and inspected it.  It was about a quarter of a bottle emptier than what she had remembered, it must have been a really rough night for her.  She released a sigh, setting it aside before her eyes chanced upon a note written next to the glass.  She gingerly picked it up before taking in the words.

“To whoever gets this first,

I’m sorry for the short notice, but I’ve got something I need to do.  I don’t know when I’ll be back or- well, don’t worry about that.  Just know that I’ll be gone for a while, but you’re all in my thoughts.  Setsuna-san, thanks for all the hard work you’ve put into not just raising Hotaru-chan, but also for all the love and support you’ve given me and Michi.  Hotaru-chan, I couldn’t be prouder of you.  You are truly wonderful and I’m excited for you to grow up and embrace the wonderful future that I know is awaiting you.  And Michi, I love you.  I’m sorry for leaving like this, but it had to be done and I hope some day you can forgive me.  Never stop being you.  Your glorious, kind-hearted you.

With much love,

Haruka”

Tears began to trickle down her cheeks as the paper crinkled in her fingers.  “Ruka?”

The sound of tires screeching outside made her immediately jump to attention as she rushed out the door, screaming at the taillights that stared back at her and ignored her pleas for the car to come back, please the car had to come back.  Haruka had to come back!

She fell to her knees as she cried.  Why wasn’t Haruka coming back?!  Why wasn’t she with her?!  Why was she getting left behind?!

She let her tears hit the pavement as she stared ahead at the empty street.

She couldn’t lose her family like this.

-

She had the perfect family.

Well, maybe that was an exaggeration, but she absolutely loved her mother and father and they treated her incredibly well, so she wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between a perfect family and her family.  After all, what other family had parents who paid as much attention to her as her family?

“And then, we saw a picture of a T-Rex!  It was huuuuuge!”

“Really, was it as big as this kitchen table?”

“Waaay bigger!  At least a zintillion times bigger!”

“Whoa, a zintillion?  That is rather large.”

“And how many zeroes are in the number zintillion?”

“Um…” the girl paused as both parents watched on in amusement.  “I don’t know.  Don’t you know daddy?  You’re a scientist who deals with things ridiculously large like T-Rex’s right?  You’ve got to know!”

The man readjusted his glasses as he gave an amused chuckle.  “Well, if my approximations are correct, it takes about one vintillion zeroes to get to one zintillion.”

“Wow!  Really?!”

The man gave a laugh.  “Well, if you don’t believe me, then perhaps you’ll just have too come to the lab and find out for yourself.”

“Okay!”

The dark-haired woman gave a playful chuckle before petting her daughter’s hair gingerly.  “Dinner’s ready for you Hota-chan.  You can’t discuss science on an empty stomach after all.”

“Right!  Thanks mom!”

She hurriedly dug into the noodle dish her mother had prepared before turning back to the woman.  “Say mom, can we go to the park tomorrow since there’s no school?”

“Of course, dear.”

“Yay!”

The small child continued to dig into her dinner, surrounded by her parents love.

Nothing could ruin the moment.

DINGDINGDINGDINGDING

“Mommy?”

“Shhh, it’s just the smoke alarm dear.  I’ll go check on it.”

“Okay.”

She picked off the last of her food, waiting patiently for her mother to return as she stabbed at her plate anxiously.

BOOOOM

“Mom?!”

She ran towards where her mother had disappeared to when she entered a room full of flame.  She cried from the pain the heat was causing her, but desperately looked around.  Her mom was in there, she couldn’t leave without her mom!

She rushed forward before a hand gripped her and she turned to see a sinister smile cross her father’s face.  “It’s too late for her Hota-chan.  Just come with me, I can make you immortal.”

“No!  I gotta find mom!”

“Hota-chan!”

“Let me GO!”

An energy escaped her as it disintegrated the arm that clutched her.  Her father screamed as she ran forward, searching endlessly as she continued to call out, crying for her mother to answer as the flames licked her skin.

“Hota… chan?”

“Mom?!”

She rushed towards the nearest doorway as debris fell around her, causing the temperature to flare up as she focused on the sound.  “Mom!  Where are you?!”

“Hota… chan…”

“Mom!!!”

She rushed towards the fallen body before sliding to her knees as she urged her mother onward.  “Mom, get up!  We have to get out!”

There was no response as the small child continued to cry out.

“MOTHER!!!”

She began to sob, watching as her fingers grew longer and her face grew more distant from her mother’s figure, growing as if she spent years crying beside her mother.  Suddenly the sound of an opening door caught her attention and she turned to find Setsuna on the other side of the space-time door.

She clutched her mother tighter as she shouted at the woman in the sky.  “Setsuna-san!  Please, save my mother!”

“I can’t do that Hotaru.”

“But-!”

“Did you even see how your mother died?”

Hotaru blinked out the tears in her eyes, dumbstruck by the question, before turning her gaze towards her mother’s body.  Blood poured out of the woman as the large scythe that belonged to Sailor Saturn stuck out of her back.  The child staggered back as she struggled to understand how her scythe was plunged into her mother’s heart.  When did she transform?  Why was this happening?!

“It’s simply your nature to destroy Hotaru, whatever you touch cannot be saved.”

“Wait, Setsuna!”

The door closed, leaving the child crying as she slammed her fists against the desecrating wall before the world burned around her.

“SETSUNA COME BACK!!!”

Her eyes flew open.  She let her gaze wander across the room before she grabbed her jacket and snuck out her window.  She didn’t know how her parents would react if they knew that she crept out her window on a regular basis.  They may not have minded but she really didn’t think asking permission was the best idea.  After all, how does one talk to their parents about not knowing how to cope with the fact that they’ve died three times?

She gave a shudder as she walked away from her house and down the road.  She hadn’t had a dream about her life before the sailor senshi since she had reawakened as Sailor Saturn, and the dreams were never as clear as the one she’d just had.  She just tried not to think about that life too much though.  There were just too many regrets that surrounded that lifetime.

Like could she have had the power to save her mother?  Or prevented her father from going mad and willingly making himself and her the hosts of alien parasites?

She hugged her jacket tighter to herself before she looked into the store window.  She didn’t realize she’d walked so far that she made it into town.  The stress must have hastened her steps as she wandered the streets.  She liked the city at night though, empty streets, empty stores, everything was just empty waiting to be filled, which was better than a city filled waiting to be emptied.

She tried to remind herself of that.  That life was a cycle that she was a part of orchestrating.  That her parents’ death, her reincarnation and reawakening, everything was part of a cycle that continued into eternity.

She paused.  If everything was part of a cycle then why was she still here while her parents perished?  Why weren’t they able to come back?  Why didn’t they get reincarnated?

She knew the reason, at least, the reason that Setsuna would have told her, but that just didn’t convince Hotaru.  If she was also the deity of rebirth then why weren’t her parents reborn?  Why couldn’t she grant them a second life?  Why only her?

Was she really the incarnation of death and rebirth, or did she just convince herself of that to ignore her true nature?

_It's simply your nature Hotaru, whatever you touch cannot be save._

SMASH

Her eyes darkened over as the sound of a security alarm went off while blood ran down her fist from the broken glass.  She stepped gingerly into the broken store window as she looked around breathing heavily.  If destruction was all she was then she may as well get started with it, which left her only one question.

Where should she begin?

-

Where would she begin?

The woman gave a sigh as she looked at the scattered books that had strewn themselves all across the living room.  At least, Hotaru _claimed_ that the books got bored and had decided to fling themselves to all corners of the house, but Setsuna was rather skeptical of that claim, no matter how much the child pouted for her to believe her plea.

“Well, I suppose if the books simply chose to scatter to the four winds then it’s our job to collect them.”

“But Setsuna-mama, it wasn’t me I swear!”

“Really?” the woman asked incredulously as she picked up the book nearest her.  “Hm, I didn’t realize we had a copy of Foucault’s _History of Madness_ here at the house.”

“Really?  Oh it’s sooooo good!  Did you know that before madness became a term people thought that those we would consider mad were actually considered to be ‘touched by the divine’ because, if there is a higher power, then they must be on a thought level that is so beyond us that human beings couldn’t comprehend it since it’s so advanced?”

Garnet eyes glanced towards the girl’s enthusiastic smile before Hotaru realized her error and covered her mouth.  “I mean, yeah, maybe that flew in here from somewhere else.”

The woman couldn’t help but release a soft chuckle at the statement.  “Hotaru-chan, it surprises me that you would be smart enough to read all these books in one afternoon, but foolish enough to think I wouldn’t know that the reason they’re scattered is because you don’t put them away once you’ve finished reading.”

“B-But it wasn’t…” the statement fell short as purple eyes averted from the stern look of Setsuna.  “Okay, I’m sorry Setsuna-mama.  I just thought I could read through them faster if I grabbed a bunch of them at a time and I ended up dropping some.  But I remembered where each book went and everything, so it was no big deal!  At least… it wasn’t until now I guess.”

The woman offered a soft smile before ruffling the girl’s hair.  “We all make mistakes.  Tell you what, how about you clean up here and when you’re done we can discuss what to do with the rest of the day.”

“Huh?  But don’t you have work?”

“I just finished everything I had due today.  But we can’t enjoy the rest of the day until this is cleaned up, can we?  You get started on that and I’ll make us some fruit sandwiches for lunch.”

“Okay!”

The child cheered and hummed as she got to work while the time senshi got to work on making the promised sandwiches.  Hotaru was a bit of a handful, which at times was difficult, but also made her glad that she decided to help.  Honestly, she was concerned how Hotaru would turn out if it was just Michiru and Haruka looking after her.  To their credit they were fairly responsible for their age, but they were both still teenagers with fully developed careers that could drag them to all corners of the world.  Sometimes she felt out of place in the little family circle they had.

But she wouldn’t trade Hotaru for the world.

BOOOOM

“Hota-chan!!!”

She rushed into the living room to find that everything was in flames as she pushed through the smog.

“Hota-chan!  Hotaru, where are you?!”

“What does it matter to you?”

She turned behind her finding the small girl she was looking for all grown up and wearing a dark purple sailor fuku.

“Hota-chan?  What’s going on?  Why have you grown?  And how were you able to transform?”

The girl simply laughed.  “All those questions are irrelevant.  The only question worth asking right now is why aren’t you doing anything to stop this?”

The woman paused, looking around her to see that she was not in the living room but in the dimension between times as the flaming house was just beyond the door of time where Setsuna could clearly see the small child Hotaru scrambling through the flaming interior.

“Mama!  Mama, where are you?!”

“Hotaru!  I’m right here!”

She rushed towards the door, but she couldn’t move past the frame, as she pounded against the force field.  “Hotaru, run!”

“Mama!  Why can’t I find you?!”

“I’m safe Hotaru, just get out of there!”

A biting laugh came from behind her as she turned to glare at the older form of the girl she wished to save.  “You really are such a fool Setsuna.  I’m not calling out to _you_.”

The woman paused.  Was the small child looking for Michiru or Haruka?  But they were out for the day, they couldn’t have been in the house, so who else could she possibly-?

“Kiki.”

The name fell off her tongue as the young woman looked past her towards the flaming room.  “You could’ve stopped this, you know.  Prevented this from ever happening.  You  _have_ the power to.”

Garnet eyes widened before she turned back to the scene, the small child beginning to collapse from lack of oxygen.  “I couldn’t leave here Hotaru and I can't rewrite the timeline.  You know this.  I have my duty to protect the space-time door.”

“Yeah, that’s just you, isn’t it?  You do nothing but watch as the world falls apart in front of you.”

“I didn’t _choose_ this path Hotaru!  I was destined to remain here and protect the space-time door no matter the circumstances!”

“Then perhaps I should simply take the path that I’m destined to anyway.”

“What do you- Hotaru!”

The young woman walked right past her into the flaming room before the time senshi noticed Sailor Saturn standing before a small Hotaru, offering a hand to the small child before sending a smirk towards the time senshi.

“Hotaru, don’t do it!”

The small child looked up, seeing the smug smile of the older her before looking down towards the hand she extended.  The time senshi continued to scream, demanding the small child’s attention.

“HOTARU!!!”

The small girl took the hand as the two forms were consumed with light before merging into a single form.  Sailor Saturn looked herself over, seeming rather pleased with the transformation before turning back to the time senshi.  “Well, hello there Setsuna-mama.  Have you come to visit me?”

“Hotaru, you don’t have to do this!”

“Don’t I though?  If you can’t even come through the door then what power do I have to stop myself from destroying the world?”

The time senshi punched the barrier, but she couldn’t get through.  “Hotaru, please, you know you’re better than this!”

“And you know this conversation is pointless.  The only reason you left the land between times was to kill me.  So how about this, you can have a second chance at it.  You can kill me before I destroy the world.  It should be an easy matter since you’ve already done it once.”

“Hotaru…” she blinked for a moment, needing to release the tears from her eyes before she pounded on the barrier again.  “Stop this madness Hotaru!  This isn’t a game!”

“You’re right,” the young woman answered as she pulled out her scythe.  “This is destiny.”

“Hotaru!”

“3.”

“Don’t do this Hotaru!”

“2.”

“Hotaru-chan!”

“1.”

“STOP!!!”

She thrust forward, using her staff to break through the barrier with her eyes closed, not daring to open them until she heard the sound of gagging.  She opened her eyes, slowly raising them towards the source of the noise in front of her before she dropped the staff and rushed forward.  “Hotaru!”

The small girl fell into her arms, continuing to cough as she bled profusely from the center of her chest where the time senshi had stabbed her with her staff.  “Setsuna… mama…?”

“Hotaru I’m sorry!  I’m so sorry!”

“No you’re not.” The small child stated as she turned her head away.  “Your duty was always what mattered most.”

“No, Hotaru please!”

She cupped the face of the small girl as her tears washed over the pale face before the girl went limp.

“HOTARU!!!”

Garnet eyes fluttered open, unprepared for the light that was piercing through her blinds.  She walked over to see where the sun was rising, it must have been early morning.  She gave a yawn and a stretch before leaving her bedroom.  There was still some time before they would need to get up for the day, but Hotaru was typically an early riser.  It wouldn’t hurt to check her room.

She opened the door silently as she poked her head in.

“Hota-chan?”

She looked around but couldn’t find the young teenager anywhere.  She closed the door and decided to head to the kitchen.  It was never too early for breakfast after all, though upon entering she decided that vodka was not on her list of desirable breakfast items.  She put the bottle away and washed the dishes before brewing herself some coffee.  She would have to check on Haruka at some point that day.

She released a sigh.  Something about her dream the previous night and the silence in the house gave her a foreboding feeling that she just couldn’t quite shake off.  She went into the living room with her coffee and turned on the TV.

The coffee mug shattered against the ground.

“Breaking news: Last night a young teenager went on a violent rampage in the middle of the night causing extensive damage to three stores in the Jûban District and breaking a window to a fourth.  She was eventually captured by police after leaving two officers hospitalized and three others injured.  Saeguchi-san is on the scene now.”

Setsuna didn’t bother listening to the rest as she rushed to her car, mentally taking note that Haruka’s car was gone as well though Michiru’s was still in the garage.  Of course, she hadn’t _seen_ Michiru yet, but if there was anyone else in the household that would be keeping their head it was Michiru.  She got into her car as she drove as quickly as she could to the juvenile detention center.

“Hello ma’am how may I-”

“I’m here to see Tomoe Hotaru.”

She stared down the teller window as the man simply gave a chuckle.  “You really think that lunatic’s being allowed guests right now?  You must be daft.”

Setsuna gritted her teeth.  “What I _am_ is her legal guardian, and you have no right to withhold any information of her whereabout from me.”

“Yeesh, you raised that psychopath?  I suppose I could sympathize with you though.  I mean, that brat must’ve left you with quite the bills to pay.”

“Just tell me where she is!”

The man went silent before rubbing the back of his neck.  “Listen lady, I’m telling you as much as I know.  They moved Hotaru elsewhere, saying that she was too unstable to be handled here.”

“Well then where is she?!”

“That’s all I know!  Listen, you can sit there and scream at me all you want, I’ll just have security have you escorted, otherwise try calling the head warden here.  I don’t have anymore information I can give you.”

“That’s fine by me,” she muttered before driving off back towards her house.  She immediately went to the phone as she hurriedly dialed the number.

“Warden’s office, how may I help you?”

“This is Meiô Setsuna calling for information on my daughter Tomoe Hotaru who was apparently taken into custody earlier this morning.”

“Ah, so you’re her legal guardian.  Glad we found you, her records have been a bit disorderly since the death of her father Tomoe Souichi.”

“Well, I’ve been taking care of her since then and would like to see her.”

“Meiô-san… I’m afraid I can’t allow that.”

“Why not?!”

She could hear the sigh on the other side of the line over her drumming fingers.  “Well, there’s been some… discussion over your continued custody over Tomoe-san.  Given the intensity of her crimes and the state she is currently in we do not believe that you would be a good fit to be her guardian.”

“Excuse me?!”

“The state of Japan has decided that she needs intensive help, and as her current guardian you have been deemed neglectful in preventing this disaster from occurring.”

“Last night’s incident means nothing!  I am still legally her guardian and I have the right to see her!”

“Not anymore,” the woman stated calmly.  “As of last night, Tomoe-san is under Japan’s custody, you have been relieved of all your rights over her.”

Setsuna slammed down the phone before tossing it aside, scattering the pages of a nearby newspaper across the floor as she thought back to a time.  A time when Michiru would make breakfast for a hyper-active Hotaru while Haruka would drink their coffee and laugh at the time senshi about her newspaper collection.  She always got the paper, always watched the news, always needed to know _everything_ that was going on in the world.  Heck she even knew everything going on in the universe since she worked at Tokyo Bay and supervised all interstellar activity from there the blonde would joke.  She claimed it was important.  Claimed that the more a person knew the more that person could prevent disaster.

Foolish.

She scattered the other papers she’d saved across the floor.  They didn’t save anyone!  Where was Hotaru?  Where were Haruka and Michiru?!  Why weren’t they anywhere in this crisis!  She turned back towards where she had found the liquor bottle, spotting a piece of paper under one of the newspapers she had tossed.  She gingerly unfolded it, scanning the lines before clenching it in her fist.

Foolish, foolish foolish!

What had happened to all of them?!  Why wasn’t she paying attention?!

_You do nothing but watch as the world falls apart around you_

She punched the wall before she cried.  She cried and cried and cried as she collapsed to the ground with past events taunting her for her misplaced diligence.  She should’ve known this couldn’t last.  Living with a family like this was like living in a dream.

She just didn’t count on it turning into a nightmare.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, this chapter was soooo dense. I hope you all don't mind that it's a bit shorter, but getting two chapters in one month is also super rare for any of my fics. Anyways, please read, kudos comment and enjoy!

DING DONG

“Setsuna-san!  Are you there?!”

The blonde tapped her foot impatiently as she sat in the silence for what she was _certain_ had to have been at least two full minutes.  She rang the doorbell again.

DING DONG

“Haruka-san?!  Michiru-san?!  Either of you in there?”

She continued to stare in absolute silence, squirming in impatience at the unmoving door.  She gave a groan before moving towards the nearby frog lawn ornament, grabbing the key that was hidden inside and moving back towards the door.

“I’m coming in!”

The door creaked slowly as she opened the door and looked around.  Something about the room felt ominous, though she wasn’t sure if it was the house or simply her own anxiety surrounding all the strange incidences that had been occurring.

“Hello?  Is anyone here?”

She continued to walk forward, looking around as she headed towards the kitchen.

“Hello?”

CRINKLE

She gasped as she looked down, the sight of countless newspapers thrown all across the room and a single crumpled paper left on the table.  She opened it up to read it over, noting that there was a long letter that was X’d out leaving only a small message at the bottom.

_We’re all gone._

“No…”

The paper fell from her fingers before she rushed out of the kitchen towards the upstairs bedrooms.

“Hotaru-chan?!”

She looked around, the lamp collection Hotaru cared for standing at ease in the dim room with the curtains blowing from the open window.  She left to the next room over.

“Haruka-san?  Michiru-san?!”

The room was empty, with the unmade bed greeting the blonde as if to say that it was planning on remaining that way.  She slammed the door before rushing towards the final room at the end of the hall.

“Setsuna-san?!”

Her room was bare, as if she had completely moved out of the house without anyone being aware.  Usagi fell to her knees as she began to cry.  Why was this happening to her?!

MRAAOOO

“Luna-!”

“Huh?”

Usagi turned to the sound, noticing that Luna had followed her, but also noticing that a familiar face was hiding behind one of the open doors.  “Mina?!”

The athlete blanched before making a mad dash down the hall.

“Mina, wait!”

She gave chase, watching as Mina leapt over the railing to land at the front door, granting the athlete an even greater lead as the odangoed blonde took the slower route of going down the stairs.  She ran as fast as she could, barely able to keep Mina in her vision as she gave chase and followed her friend into town.  She tried to keep an eye on the bouncing red ribbon as she weaved through the crowds of the shopping center.  She watched as her friend dove into an alley where Usagi was certain she would catch her.  It was a dead-end, there was no way Mina could escape her!  She turned the corner, taking a screeching halt as an incredulous gasp escaped her.

Mina was gone.

“Mina…”

The tears returned, streaking down her face as she stared down the empty alley.

“Mina… why…?”

The tears fell freely as she dropped to her knees.

“Aren’t we friends Mina?!”

She tried to hurriedly wipe the tears, but every time she did more replaced the ones she’d removed.

“Mina!  Please… don’t leave me like this!!!”

She sobbed as her tears stained the ground.

“Please don’t make me be alone.”

“Usagi…”

The blonde immediately perked up, turning around to find her familiar friend who had tears welling within her own eyes.  Usagi immediately got up and rushed to her, hugging her as tightly as she possibly could as she continued to bawl into the senshi leader’s shoulder.  “Mina!!! Mina…”

The strong arms of the senshi leader hesitantly returned the embrace as she nuzzled her cheek against the top of Usagi’s head.  “Yeah Usagi.  It’s me.”

The princess dug her fingers into the Mina’s school uniform as she nuzzled into the crook of her friend’s neck.  “What’s going on?!  Why is everyone going away?!”

“I don’t know Usagi,” the blonde answered as she stroked the Usagi's golden hair.  “I didn’t know this was happening.”

The blonde released her grip on her friend as she looked Mina in the eyes.  “Why were you avoiding me?”

Mina stared back for a moment, holding in her answer before turning away with a sigh.  “I just thought it would be better for you that way.”

“How could it be better for me Mina-P?!  Don’t you know how important you are to me?!?!”

“I…” she disentangled herself from Usagi’s arms as she turned towards the street.  “You don’t need me Usagi.  You have Mamoru-san.”

“He’s in America right now Mina, that’s hardly fair!”

A humorless chuckle escaped the leader as she hugged one of her elbows.  “You’re right… it isn’t fair.”

“Mina…” Usagi reached a hand out towards her friend as she held her hand.  “I need you Mina-P.  Please, don’t make me be alone.”

The leader gave a sigh as she tightened her grip on her princess’ hand.  “I just thought you’d be better off without me.”

“How could I be better off without you Mina?!  You’re my best friend!”

A slight cringe escaped the senshi leader as she squeezed Usagi’s hand tighter to try to hide it.  “I’m not that great of a friend-”

“Don’t say that Mina!”  Usagi shouted as she squeezed the hand back.  “I need you Mina-P!  I don’t know what to do without you!”

“Usagi…”

They remained in silence for a moment, the princess begging her army’s leader to look at her as the blonde continued to hold her gaze on the crowded street ahead.  Suddenly, Usagi let go of the hand, taking hers back as the tears returned.

“Usagi?”

“No… I get it,” she released a sniffle before turning back to Mina.  “I can understand why you wouldn’t want to be friends with me.  I mean, I’m such a crybaby and everything…”

“Usagi!”

“It-it’s fine!  I’ll just go home and-”

“Usagi, wait!”

She grabbed Usagi's hand, squeezing it tightly as she tugged lightly.  “I’m sorry Usagi, can we just forget about this?  Let’s just… let’s do something… and… just forget about this.”

The odangoed blonde turned around, wiping the final tears from her face as she softly mumbled her response.  “Okay…”

“Okay,” Mina repeated with a sigh as she dropped the hand.  “Okay… so… what do you want to do?  We’re near the arcade, I can show you the new shooter game they got.”

“Actually, do you wanna just come to my place?”  Usagi suggested.  “I just got the latest Star Gazers CD.  I haven’t listened to it yet because I thought we’d listen to it together since you’re such a huge fan of them.”

Mina froze at the suggestion.  “Y-Your place?”

“Yeah... Is that okay?”

“Oh, y-yeah, of course!”  Mina answered in a flustered tone.  “I just didn’t think your parents would let me over after… well…”

Usagi shook her head.  “I served my detention.  Besides, they aren’t home right now to say no.”

“Oh…” Mina answered while rubbing the back of her head.  “I… see…”

“Mina-P, are you okay?”

“Huh?”  She turned towards her friend before giving an awkward laugh.  “Oh, yeah, of course!  So, your house was this way, right?”

“Oh, um… yeah.”

“Right…”

Usagi wasn’t sure what it was but something about their interaction seemed… awkward.  Which was strange because Mina was _never_ awkward.  She was always so confident and sure-of-herself and talkative but today she was anything but any of those things.  She hoped that things would be normal once they got to her place where they could just hang out and play games like they would every other day.

She could only hope.

She opened the door quietly as Mina stepped in.  They had never been so quiet around each other before.

“Um, let’s head up to my room.  We can use my CD player.”

“Right…”

The odangoed blonde gave a half-hearted smile as she ran up the stairs while concerned thoughts rang in her mind.  _Why was Mina so quiet?  What was on her mind?_

They made it to her room before Usagi turned towards one of the bookshelves.  “Alright, I know I left it around here somewhere.  You can just make yourself at home while I look.”

“’Kay…” Mina took a seat on the bed while Usagi was hard at work rummaging through her bookshelves that drove Mina crazy.  She needed a distraction from the way that Usagi's shirt rode up when she tried reaching around the top shelf and the adorable frustrated mumbles she'd give when she found an object that wasn't the CD.  She looked around trying to find something to occupy her mind before she found a Sailor V doll on the nightstand.  She grabbed it and looked it over, well taken care of with a few loose threads from a little too much love.  She stroked the hair of the doll as a soft smile crossed her face.  At least someone was there for Usagi when she wasn’t up to it.

“KYAH!”

“Usagi!”

She rushed over to the odangoed blonde who had fallen and was rubbing her behind.  “Ow…”

“Usagi, are you okay?”

She looked into the concerned gaze of the senshi leader before offering a full smile.  “Oh, yeah I’m fine.  I’m sorry, I’m always such a klutz.”

“You’re perfectly fine Usagi,” she answered back with a light giggle as she moved a strand of hair that had loosed itself from one of Usagi’s buns behind her ear.  Her hand lingered, not touching Usagi’s cheek but close enough that she could feel a buzz of anxiety course through her fingers as her eyes lingered on the princess’ blue.

“Mina?”

The girl in question blinked before moving her hand away.  “Oh, uh, sorry!  I didn’t mean to… um…”

“Mina, it’s okay.”

“No, it’s not!”

“Mina!”

The princess rushed to grab Mina's hand as she noticed that she was holding the Sailor V doll she kept on her nightstand.  “Mina…”

“I… I’m sorry.  I don’t know what’s wrong with me I just-”

“There’s nothing wrong with you Mina.”

Silence filled the room as Mina failed to come up with a response, instead she turned towards their conjoined hands before a light smile crossed her face.  “I didn’t realize you had a Sailor V doll.”

“Hm?”  The princess turned towards where Mina was looking before a soft chuckle escaped her.  “Oh, right.  I’ve actually had this since Chibi-Usa first arrived.  Mamo-chan won a Tuxedo Mask doll for her from the crane game and when I asked him for one he told me to get it myself.  Of course, I never could.  I’m terrible at the crane game, but Furu-chan gave me this one.  I’ve kept it ever since.”

Mina’s gaze returned to the doll, an unreadable expression crossing her face as she focused on the feeling of felt in her hand.

“I would’ve gotten that doll for you.”

Her grip tightened around the doll as the threads began to break showing signs of the cotton within.

“I would’ve given you anything you asked for.”

“Mina?”

The blonde turned at her name as tears threatened to trickle down her face.

“What are you talking about Mina?”

“I… I need to go.”

The blonde got up and walked towards the door as Usagi followed.

“What?  But, Mina!”

“I can’t stay here Usagi!”

Usagi grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

“Mina, please!”

“I’m sorry Usagi.”

“No!  I won’t let you go!”

Mina immediately turned, pulling Usagi closer as she crashed their lips together as her tears melded into the kiss to give it a bitter taste.  She released Usagi’s lips before hugging her tightly and nuzzling into her neck.  “Tell me to leave Usagi...”

“I won’t let you go Mina…”

She shook her head which felt more like a nuzzle to Usagi with the way her head was rested within the crook of her neck.  Mina’s hands roamed slowly over the blonde’s uniform, sliding down her sides before tucking under her shirt to rise up the bare skin of her back.  She let her hands roam as she continued to nuzzle the blonde’s neck, fighting for the control to just walk out on her own, even if it left the person she loved most heartbroken.  “Tell me to stop Usagi.”

“Don’t go…”

She lightly bit into Usagi’s neck as the princess gave a soft gasp.  This was everything she wanted, the blonde’s breathless responses, the princess’ slender fingers gripping her tightly with the promise of never letting go, with having all the time in the world to worship her princess as Usagi deserved to be worshiped.

But it was all wrong.

“Usagi…”

“Don’t…”

Usagi tripped backwards, falling on her bed as her friend fell on top of her, continuing to nip Usagi’s neck lightly as she trailed her kisses up towards her friend’s jawline and back down to her lips.  The taste of tears were still strong as she lightly ran her tongue across Usagi’s bottom lip to which Usagi responded, opening her mouth to allow Mina’s tongue to run freely as the blonde gripped her princess tighter in response.  _What was Usagi doing?  Why was she allowing this?!_   But every time her grip tightened Usagi’s also would, every time her hands roamed Usagi’s body she would sigh, and every time she’d try to speak Usagi would silence it, either with a kiss or with the same mantra she’d heard throughout the entire affair.

_Don’t go…_

Her grip tightened as she shed her tears against Usagi’s cheek.  Usagi had to know where her hands were, what she was planning on doing next.  Her fingers circled the soft skin just below the waistband of Usagi’s skirt.

“Tell me to stop.”

She felt the fingers scratching into her back.

“I won’t let you go…”

Mina nuzzled the blonde’s neck again, trying to wipe away the tears since her hands were too busy doing precisely what she didn’t want them to.  A hand slid further down, stroking down Usagi’s thigh to rise and caress the inside as Usagi gave a soft sigh before gasping as Mina came closer to her core.

“Usagi…”

“Mina…”

The door burst open as a face all too familiar to the two of them glowed with rage.

“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!?!?!”

“Mamo-chan!”

The odangoed blonde immediately rushed from the bed to greet her fiancé as Mina was left dumbstruck, watching blankly as the man shouted and gestured angrily at the situation with Usagi trying to plead with him while the blonde simply dug her fingers into the bed.

It fucking figured.

There was a moment where she hoped… but that didn’t matter.  It never mattered what she did or what she’d sacrifice for Usagi.

She’d never be _him_.

She walked towards the window, opened it up and jumped out as the two remained in their bitter argument.

“Mamo-chan, please!  Just calm down!”

“How can I be calm?!  I fly over here from America because I was worried about you and I find you fucking with Mina's fingers in your cunt!”

“Mamo-chan, I’m sorry!  It was a mistake, I didn’t mean for it to happen!”

“Then why didn’t you stop it!  You just laid back and let her finger fuck you!”

“It was an accident Mamo-chan, please just listen to me!”

“I’m done talking to you.”

He walked towards the door as Usagi watched with teary eyes.  “Mamo-chan!”

“Just stop it Usagi!  I don't want anything to do with you, or your friends anymore!  We're through!”

The door slammed shut as the blonde fell to her knees and sobbed, crying out all the tears she didn't realize she had since she was certain she would've run out of them by now.

What had just happened?

She howled a bitter laugh towards the ceiling.  Wasn't it obvious?

She messed up.

She totally messed up!  Mamo-chan would never forgive her and Mina-P probably wouldn't either.  She forced Mina to stay, even though she _knew_ where it was going, she _knew_ what Mina was going to do, she _knew_ Mina wanted her to stop it all.

But she was too scared of being alone.

Of course, that’s exactly what she was right now wasn’t it?  She was alone.  Absolutely and utterly alone.

She cupped her hands over her heart as she cried.  Why did it hurt so bad?  Why did this happen now?  Why were they all falling apart?!

She felt a weight materialize in her hands as she looked towards the holy grail that had appeared before her.

It didn’t look right.  The colors were dull and the ceramic looked like it was chipping as she watched it with tears in her eyes.

“What’s happening in our hearts.”

She opened the chalice as a light enveloped her.

“Please, show me what’s happening in our hearts!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... yeah... that'll probably be the closest thing to a sex scene I'll ever write. Anyways, thanks again for reading and again please kudos and comment!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm so sorry for the long delay, but this chapter got long, so I hope 10000+ words will satisfy. On a side note I got accepted back into school and although I'm going to try to maintain my regular writing goals I can't promise that I'll be able to update as much I I have. In any case, here's the next chapter! Please read, kudos, comment and most of all enjoy!

It was all black.

She looked around, trying to find any semblance of life or light within the area, but nothing could be found.  Why was she alone?

She shook her head as she put on a brave face.  There had to be someone here, she couldn’t be all by herself.

But what if she was?

“Where’s Usagi?”

The girl immediately perked at the sound of her name coming from a familiar voice.  “Mina?!  Mina-P?!  Where are you?!”

“Why?   Waiting for me to leave so you two can get back to whoring around?”

SLAP

“You have no right to talk about her that way!”  Mina’s voice shouted as Usagi covered her mouth to hide her shock, fighting the tears.

“Mamo-chan…”

“You fucking bitch!”

“STOP!!!”

Usagi fell to her knees as she let the sobs overtake her, wishing desperately for the two voices to find peace amongst themselves after she had so unwittingly sewn chaos within them.  She didn’t mean for this to happen she just wanted them to…

“Please… stop…”

“Usagi?”

She looked up, tears filling her eyes as the sound of heavy footsteps rushing away echoed in her ears and made the darkness feel heavy.  Usagi reached out, hoping to catch whoever was running but-

“Usagi.”

She turned around to find a teary eyed Sailor Venus looking at her with such remorse that it released the tears Usagi was fighting as she rose to embrace her friend.

“Mina-P!  You’re okay!”

The senshi captain simply stood there, allowing her princess to cry into her shoulder, not bothering to return the embrace as she stared blankly ahead at the darkness before her.

“I’m not Mina, Usagi.”

Usagi let out a questioning hum as she pulled back to look into Mina’s crystal blue eyes.  “But, but you’re-”

“I’m simply her guardian spirit,” the figure explained as she pulled herself out of the embrace.  “I’m a piece of her that’s always supposed to look after her, but now…”

“But now what?!”  Usagi asked as she gripped the guardian’s arms.  “Where’s Mina?!”

The guardian simply sighed before giving Usagi a sheepish look.

“Here, I’ll let you retrace my steps.”

* * *

 

The scene was completely changed.  The sky was a heavy yellow color that glowed similar to the color of gold, complimenting the fields that were a deep shade of green, much darker than what grass would’ve looked like on Earth.  The hedges were nicely trimmed and flowers of all sorts bloomed from them in deep colors of red and purple where among it all was a small girl with long blonde hair, running around in a dress that looked so impractical to such activity.

She burst out of the gardens, trying desperately to keep her eyes opened so that she could watch the fields ahead and better determine which direction she needed to go in order to escape her pursuer, but the surge of giggles often impaired her ability.   She continued on anyways, short legs moving as quickly as possible as her hair would stream behind her and often would get stuck on her face as she’d either spit it out or pull it away to keep it from obscuring her view.  It didn’t matter what she did though, because she was soon grabbed by large hands as she let out a squeal before being spun through the air to be pulled back into the arms of the laughing woman who held her close, giggling to the point of tears.

“No fair Mommy!  You were just supposed to tag me, not grab me altogether!”

“I know the rules Lorelei,” her mother stated in her usual warm tone.  “But I’m afraid that it’s time for supper, so we’ll have to continue these festivities later.”

“Aw, but mommy!”

“Shhhhh,” the woman hushed softly as she placed an index finger against the girl’s lips.  “No arguing with me on this.  But, if your good, your daddy might be free to play with us afterwards.”

“Really?!”

Lorelei was absolutely giddy, bouncing as well as she could within her mother’s arms as a wide grin spread across her face.  “Oh boy oh boy oh boy!”

The woman simply laughed as she held her daughter tighter with Lorelei noticing the bittersweet smile that spread across her face.

“Mommy, do you and Daddy really have to leave tomorrow?”

The woman turned towards the girl who’s eyes begged for an answer different than the one she knew she’d inevitably be given.  Her mother simply offered a smile before running a thumb across her daughter’s cheek.

“We’ve already discussed this Lorelei.  There have been troubles brewing in the Southern Venusian Kingdom that your father and I must resolve.  We have to be there for the people.”

“Then let me come!’

“No.”

“But why not?!  If I’m the princess shouldn’t I be there too?!”

“No.”

Lorelei pouted at her mother who had her gaze focused on the path ahead that would lead them through the royal gardens and into the palace.  The girl crossed her arms as she pouted.  “Why don’t you let me do anything?”

“Because you’re still too young Lorelei,” the woman answered as she turned back to her daughter with a soft smile on her face.  “But it’s okay, you’ll be safe here.”

“And what about you?!  Will you be safe?!”

The woman offered a laugh as she tucked Lorelei’s hair behind her ear.  “Of course Lorelei, we will be well protected.  Besides, your father and I know how to defend ourselves should the situation arise.”

“Then why can’t I come if it’s so safe?”

“Because you still need to train and learn to be a proper princess.”

Lorelei crossed her arms and pouted before her mother poked her nose.  “Don’t fret so much Lorelei, just be patient.  I promise you’ll be a wonderful princess.”

The small girl simply offered a smile before hugging her mother tightly as they both entered the castle, completely unaware of the presence that had watched the entire exchange.

“Lorelei,” Usagi tested the name out in her mouth.  It sounded vaguely familiar, but she still thought the feel of it in her mouth tasted strange.  Why was that woman calling that girl Lorelei?

“I should’ve known Mom was lying that day.”

The odangoed blonde turned around, finding a full-grown version of the girl she’d just seen standing next to her.  “Mina?!”

“Things weren’t supposed to be like this.”

Usagi reached out to her friend but as soon as her fingers grazed Mina’s arm she fazed through them causing a staticky image to surround them.  Mina disappeared as the whole world around her morphed with trees becoming bookshelves and the gardens giving way to walls until eventually she found herself in an ornate bedroom, large enough to be the size of a modern living room.  She noted how the bed was a pristinely made canopy bed, the dark mahogany matching the vanity that sat against the wall next to it as Usagi wandered the room in awe.  The ceiling was vaulted high as bookshelves and portraits lined the walls, making the large room feel rather full as a massive window that led out to the rolling green hills and golden sky was occupied by a little girl who simply stared on.  Usagi could hear the girl’s thoughts as if they were her own, wondering why her parents went without her, hoping they were okay as memories of them playing together under the golden sky wrapped themselves around her mind.

Lorelei leaned into her arms as she tried to fight off sleep.  Today had been another full day, with lots of inter-stellar policies learning, combat training, manners and discipline practice, honestly, there was a lot to becoming a princess, though she supposed it was to be expected.  With the way that her parents were so perfect she would eventually have to be that way too, showing why she was divinely chosen to live in the castle, a way of showing the world that she was their leader because she was the perfect incarnation of love and beauty who could lead their people to prosperity, just like her parents.  It was a difficult burden to bear, but she could do it for her parents, for their constant love and support.  She really needed that now.

“Your highness?”

“Are my parents home?!”

The woman simply bowed her head as she gave it a shake.  “I apologize, my divine.  Your uncle is here, however.  He said he needs to talk to you.”

“You mean Uncle Hasseth?  Wasn’t he with my parents?”

The woman simply bowed as she stepped back beyond the door, allowing her uncle to enter the room.  Lorelei rose from her spot, noting the bandage wrapped around his head over one of his dark blue eyes as his dirty blonde hair that was usually pristine looked haggard.  The girl gulped roughly as she looked over her uncle.  “Uncle Hasseth, where are my parents?”

The man shook his head as tears looked like they could run down his only visible eye.  “I’m so sorry Lorelei,” he answered with a shudder to his voice.  “We were attacked, and-”

“I don’t care what happened, just tell me where my parents are!”

“Our carriage was blown up… I was the only one who survived.”

“You’re lying!  Tell me where my parents are!”

Instead, the man simply sobbed, dropping to his knees as Lorelei began to cry.

“THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!!!”

She ran out of her room, down the halls, out of the castle, through the gardens and out into the fields as she sobbed.  Letting all the pain, all the sorrow, all the anguish out as she mourned for the parents who will never be able to play with her in those fields again.  She curled up her hands as she tried desperately to stop the tears as Usagi tried to stop her own.  “Mina?”

The girl turned to her with a scowl as she pulled out the chain from her side and attacked.

“Mina, wait!”

Usagi raised her hands, hoping they’d block the oncoming attack, but it never came.  She opened her eyes as she looked around, Mina was now in a training room as her stylized chain lay between Usagi’s feet.  The girl attacked again, Usagi flinching at the notion, but paused realizing that the chain simply passed through her as it would hit the dummy behind her.  She moved off to the side, watching Mina’s angry assault as tears filled her eyes while her thoughts ran wild.  _If only she were stronger.  If only she were older.  If only she were there._

_She should’ve been able to save her parents._

A final ‘thwunk’ resounded in the room before the Venusian Princess fell to her knees and sobbed.

“I should’ve known it’d only get worse from there.”

Usagi turned around to find Mina again walking through the wall as she chased after her to arrive at a completely new scene.  She was now in a large coronation hall as Lord Hasseth was announced to be the next Head of Venus.  Usagi tried desperately to listen to his words, but they were muffled, the whole scene seemed blurry as the only thing in focus was a man with choppy hair that was a color so blonde it was on the verge of turning green.  Usagi caught on to the words that that man was supposed to be Hasseth's adviser, the highest ranking to the crown beneath the king which caused Lorelei to scowl.

The entire time, she felt that man’s gaze on her, leering at her as she tried desperately to ignore how uncomfortable he made her feel, hoping that she’d misheard her uncle on his new title.  But she hadn’t, and she was certain that things were just going to continue to spiral out of control from that moment on.

“I had never been more upset with being right,” Mina answered as a tear fell from her face.  Usagi tried to embrace her, but the tear dropped to the ground, causing it to rippled as the walls followed the motion and reshaped themselves into a new memory.  She was back in her room, which was where she spent most of her time now when she wasn’t training.  She had all but abandoned going to her classes, much to the chagrin of her teachers and her uncle, but she couldn’t understand the point of going.  It was obvious that things were getting harder on the people of Venus, but her uncle refused to tell her what, often denying that there was a problem, or claiming it was getting fixed.  That didn’t convince her though as she could hear her country’s protests from her room.  Not that she could see them since the protests were held at the front gate while her window led to the palace gardens.

The same gardens that she and her parents would walk through as they'd wander to the fields to play.

She shook her head as she rose from her spot, heading back to the training room.  At least when she was attacking the helpless dummy the thoughts of her parents seemed to dull.

Usagi helplessly watched as she witnessed an entire lifetime of her friend’s lonely battle, continuing to argue with her uncle over the state of Venus, attacking the practice dummy as if that were the cause of it all, staring our her window and reminiscing on her parents.  She watched her friend slowly grow from the small girl to the young woman she’d met as she continued the same routine to stave off the loneliness.

“Your highness?  The high divine wishes to speak with you.”

Lorelei simply gave a curt nod as she left her place from her window.  She slowly rose from her place as the scene shifted to the palace’s grand hall where the Venusian Princess stood before the king and his adviser, the adviser’s leering gaze never leaving her form as she suppressed the shudder.

“You want me to marry?!  Are you insane?!”

“Now Lorelei, I know this my seem sudden, but my adviser and I agree that you are at the age where-”

“What does my age have anything to do with this?!  My parents didn’t marry until well beyond my current years, this is absurd!”

“As difficult as it may be to grasp, you have to produce an heir.”

“Where did that come from?  I don’t need to produce an heir the gods provide one!”

“We are the one’s chosen by the gods Lorelei which means our rule needs to be absolute,” Hasseth answered as Lorelei’s scowl grew deeper.  “Besides, we have already found a suitable husband for-”

“You have no right!”  Lorelei shouted as she clenched her fists.  “Our customs state that I have the right to choose who I marry regardless of gender or standing.  You can’t do this to me!”

Her uncle released a sigh, “You left us no choice.  You have refused to attend any of your lessons and have been quite rebellious these past years, so we decided that you will require additional assistance in ruling Venus.”

“ _I’m_ the one who needs assistance?”  Lorelei asked in mock disbelief as a scoff left her lips.  “You clearly don’t know what’s been going on in this country since you took over.”

“Lorelei-”

“Crime rates are at an all-time high in all city-states across the globe.”

“We have our forces fighting against those now.”

“Businesses are collapsing overnight.”

“We’re aware of that situation as well.”

“People are disappearing!”

“And we’re working on finding them!”

“Well, you ought to be looking for the people who kidnap them because its no secret that they’re getting sold to the Martian slave trade!”

“There is no evidence for that Lorelei!”

“Isn’t there?”  The princess asked with her arms crossed.  “I may not have free roam of the castle, as per your decree, but that doesn’t mean I’m completely isolated from these events.  There’s a group here that’s selling our people to those cretins of the red planet, and if you weren’t so busy trying to impress your adviser with your negligence, this wouldn’t be an issue!”

“And this is precisely why-”

“I wasn’t talking to you!”  Lorelei shouted at the man whose gaze furrowed with a dark expression she read easily.  She swore if he tried anything she wouldn’t hesitate to break his fingers.  And a part of her hoped he would just so that she could do just that.

“Lorelei, you have to be aware of how inappropriate this behavior is amongst divinity,” her uncle answered.  “We believe that marriage will help calm your wild temperament to make you a better-”

“I’m not talking to you about this anymore,” Lorelei answered as she turned away, but not before sending her uncle a final scowl.  “I don’t even know who you are anymore.”

She walked out, still feeling the adviser’s gaze on her.  She didn’t care who the suitor was, but if it was him she swore she might just kill herself and leave her next reincarnation to deal with the consequences.  She went straight to the training room after, unleashing all her fury on the dummy before returning to her room to read the books she had there on military tactics before turning back to her window.  An arranged marriage was absurd!  It went against everything the planet stood for!  But then again, everything going on in the country did.  The way her people were being sold overnight to the Martians while her uncle ignored the issue altogether.  The fact that he never went back to look into her parents murders to bring them to justice.  The fact that her uncle’s adviser was so clearly using him, for an end she wasn’t entirely sure, but she knew it couldn’t be good.  And then the marriage…

Her fingers dug into her arms as she continued to sob.  It wasn’t right.  She couldn’t be told who to marry, who to love, it was her right, they couldn’t take that away from her.  Sweet Venus, love was all that her country stood for!

So, what was left of her country if all love was lost?

The princess wiped her tears, as she looked out her window, swearing that blue eyes spied on her from the garden, but she was indifferent to it.  She could feel the pity that emanated from them, but she didn’t care for the pity for herself, it was better saved for their country.  She wasn’t so blind as to miss that her country was dying.

She just hoped that there was someone out there who could save it.

She turned to her bed, tears flowing onto her pillow as Usagi could feel the loneliness emanating from her friend as she moved towards the bed to comfort her, but the bed kept going further away, disappearing into a small point before Usagi found herself in a large hallway with Mina running towards her before running right through the bewildered blonde who simply let her gaze follow her friend who stopped right before a door.

“Unc-!”

“This wasn’t part of the deal Hasseth!”

Lorelei paused, stopping her hand from knocking on the door before she decided to listen in.

“I know that Sarel, but this is beyond Venus.  This is a summons from the Moon, the head of the Interstellar Peace Commission, I can’t ignore this.”

“You’ve ignored them before.  After all, interstellar slave sales are deemed impermissible according to the treaty.”

“As it should be.”

A barking laugh escaped the adviser.  “Oh, that is rich coming from you, you didn’t even hesitate to sell this countries gods to those Martian pigs.”

Lorelei’s fingers dug into the stone walls as she gritted her teeth.

“I had no choice.”

“Oh yes you did,” the man answered with a sinister chuckle.  “You could’ve gone with them, and I was half tempted to send there, but you convinced me of your worth.  Convinced me you would be worth more to me if I kept you around, and you have been.  But she is the deity of love, the reincarnated pinnacle of our planet.  Without her this plan means nothing!”

“Don’t be absurd, even if she leaves Venus still needs a ruling head, and that title still falls to me!”

“You’re only Head until I expose you for being the coward you are!”

Lorelei left.  She should’ve figured that’s what happened.  Should’ve known her parents weren’t actually killed.

Should’ve known her uncle could’ve saved them.

She slammed the door to her room with Usagi following, trying hard to not cry over the newfound knowledge of what happened to her friend’s parents while Mina tore up the room, shredding the canopy, flinging books and knocking over bookshelves.  She tossed everything across her vanity as she punched the mirror in the middle, cracking the glass that cut into her hand before she pulled it away to look at her distorted reflection.

Her planet was beyond help.

 _She_ was beyond help.

She pulled out the chain she kept holstered on the belt of her dress as she jumped out of her window, free falling before she whipped the chain against the spire at the top of her room’s tower.  The chain latched on to slow her descent before she landed gently on the ground, tugging the chain to return it to her side before running off.  Usagi watched, staring at the walls in the room that melted away into the sight of a Venusian jet about to be boarded by a woman in a cloak.  Usagi ran forward, recognizing Mina immediately under the cloak as she turned back towards the crowd, hearing the thoughts that crossed her friend’s mind as she locked eyes with a man in the crowd.

Lorelei paused for a moment, wondering if she was being too hasty.  His eyes remained locked with hers as so much unspoken pain resided within the gaze as she wondered if this was what love was.  That moment where a gaze would lock with her own and all their feelings would feel so plain to each other, feeling as if they already knew each other.

She turned away as she bit back a sob.

There was no love left on Venus.

She’d just have to hope that the moon had something worthwhile if she was summoned to be there.

The jet took off, leaving in it’s wake the scene as Usagi suddenly found herself in a place she’d almost forgotten about.

She was in front of the castle of the Silver Millenium.

She paused, mouth agape at the sight as the sound of a scuffle occurred next to her.

“Halt!  Who goes there?!”

The woman released the hood on her head, revealing clear blue eyes.  “I am the Princess of Venus, and I am here at the request of the Moon Kingdom’s royalty.”

The guard scoffed as he pressed his spear further towards the guest.  “If you were requested to be here then you’d have some proof.”

She swallowed hard as she kept her hands raised.  “Well-”

“Do you even know the name of the royal house here?”

She chewed on her lip as she tried to think of something.  She had to have read about the Moon Kingdom’s royal family _somewhere_ so what was the family name?

“Go back to the rabble you came from,” the guard commanded as he pushed her away.  “We have bigger concerns to deal with.”

“Hey, wait-!”

“What are you doing to that poor girl captain?”

The man turned quickly towards the voice before dropping to one knee.  “My apologies my queen.  This girl was making her way to the castle claiming to be the Princess of Venus, but since we haven’t received word of her arrival and she has no identifying documents I decided to remove her from the premise.”

“There’s no need for that, for this is indeed my invited guest,” she turned towards the runaway princess as she offered a warm smile.  “It’s good to see you made it here safely.”

“Yeah, but…” the princess dug the toes of her shoes into the ground as she avoided the queen’s gaze.  “I… I actually wasn’t informed on why you summoned me.”

“Of course, please come with me.  I’m certain everything will become clear once we’re inside.”

The blonde followed the queen hesitantly as the scene dripped away from Usagi while thoughts flooded her mind, recognizing the structures, trying to find what made them all familiar, but those thoughts weren’t hers.  It was Mina’s voice that was scouring the scene for answers as she took in every detail, knowing she had been in that castle before but swearing that had to be false since she had never left Venus.  Of course, there was still that queen.  She turned her gaze to the queen who had a knowing smirk across her face that made the Venusian Princess largely irritated.

“Why are you looking so smug?”

The queen simply laughed at the flippant remark as she shook her head.  “I apologize, I suppose I am simply excited for you to meet with my daughter again.”

“You see!  I knew you knew something!  What do you mean by ‘meet with your daughter again’?!”

“Well,” the queen simply answered with a giggle.  “Maybe you ought to try to see for yourself.”

She opened the door to a bedroom where there she saw _her_ , the most beautiful girl to have possibly existed in the galaxy as suddenly the memories became clear.  She _had_ been to the Moon Kingdom before, she _had_ met with the Moon Princess before, and she _had_ done all this before she was born.  She wasn’t sure how, but that didn’t change the fact that she knelt to one knee as the princess rose from her seat.

“My Princess Serenity, I apologize for the intrusion, but I have come to fulfill my duty.”

The regal princess stood before the kneeling Venusian as a light giggle escaped her.

“I’m glad you finally made it, things were getting lonely around here.”

The memories continued to flow in, passing in front of Usagi like a living movie as the rest of the princesses arrived to assemble the sailor guardians, though she couldn’t ignore the sneer that crossed Venus' face at the Martian Princess’ arrival.  The memory was blurry, but it passed into a new scene with Mars and Venus in an arena, the sneer never leaving the blonde as Mars held a cocky smile across her face.  Venus was known for her agility and flexible thinking, but it never seemed to matter against the fortune teller who could predict Venus' next move before she’d do it.  She lost almost before the match even began, with the Martian Princess spitting next to Venus' fallen form.

“I can’t believe _you_ are the one that was picked to lead us.”

Venus rose quickly to try to tackle Mars, but was stopped by Jupiter while Mercury talked her down.  She kept her gaze locked on Mars' retreating form as it left behind another memory of her friend standing with the queen, anger etched across her face as she fought back the tears.

“I just don’t get it!  How could you let that psychopath on our team?!”

“For the same reasons you’re here,” the queen answered casually as she took a sip of her tea.  “She made a vow to protect the princess, just as you did.”

“There’s no way that sadist would ever make a vow to protect anyone!  She’s the princess of Mars!  They don’t care about anyone out there!”

“That may be so, however Mars is part of the Interstellar Peace Commission and she already swore her fealty to this kingdom.  Regardless of whatever her opinions and feelings are, they are transitory, for the vow she gave to this kingdom existed long before she did.”

“That doesn’t mean anything!”  Sailor Venus shouted as she slammed her fists against the table.  “Those vows were made before any of us were born!  She probably doesn’t even remember it!  How am I supposed to trust her not to turn on us?  To turn on the princess?!”

“Because the princess doesn’t believe that Mars will turn on her,” the queen stated evenly as she hardened her gaze towards Venus.  “Of everyone on the team, you’re the only one who is concerned about Mars.”

“I have good reason to be,” Venus grumbled as she crossed her arms, prompting the queen to sit across from her.

“Sailor Venus, do you know why I appointed you to be team captain?”

The blonde sighed as she shrugged her shoulders.  “Not really.  Honestly I was half convinced that you just gave me the title because I was the first one here.”

The queen released a giggle as she took another sip of her tea.  “Do you remember your vow to Princess Serenity when we held the initiation ceremony for the Sailor Guardians?”

The Venusian stared into her tea, looking back at her reflection that shared the same blue eyes as the princess she swore to protect.  “I swore my love to her.  That through the greatest gift and providence of Venus she may never feel alone or distraught and that everything I do will be for her sake.”

The queen grabbed one of Venus’ hands as she locked her gaze with the Venusian.  “I made you captain because I knew you were sincere.  I knew that you would love my daughter with all your heart and make any decision regarding the team with only her in mind.  And I also know that, because of that love, you will put aside your anger towards Mars because you know how much it hurts her every time you argue, every time you accuse Mars for treachery against your country, every time you challenge her to a spar to try to repair your lost pride.  I know you know this, but I believe you when you promise my daughter your love, so for your love of my daughter, I ask you to let those feelings go.”

Venus turned to look back into the queen’s eyes as they began to fade out of focus, being replaced by a scene back in the arena field, the blonde still cursing in Venusian as she pounded the ground while Mars belittled her for being so weak.  She rose, readying an insult or accusation to throw Mars' way before she thought back to her conversation with the queen.  She looked up to the window where she knew Serenity was watching them spar through when she was supposed to be focused on studying.  Venus picked herself up, brushed herself off and let out a sigh.

She couldn’t bring herself to look Mars in the eyes, but she wasn’t going to retaliate either.  She was better than that.  She was _going_ to be better than that.

After all, everything she did was for Serenity.

And if she couldn’t give her princess the best then she may as well just pack up and go home.

“Hey, Mars!”

The woman turned her hardened amethysts towards the senshi captain as Venus tried desperately to not let her animosity get in her way.

“Good match.”

The woman simply scoffed and walked away, causing an irritation to bubble within Venus.  Mars could be so loathsome, a conniving witch who did nothing but plot how to force everyone under her control and manipulate them to her demands and Venus wanted so badly to chew her out and tell her _exactly_ what she thought of her.

And she almost did.

But instead she decided to simply close her eyes, take a deep inhale in, and let all the air out.

Then she smiled.

And then she laughed.

She held her stomach as she bent over laughing, Mercury and Jupiter coming to her aid as she tried to wave them off before looking back towards the tower.

Serenity deserved the best.

So she was going to be the best for her.

A smile spread across Usagi’s face as she watched her friends revel in so much joy before the scene changed to a castle hallway where the same Martian princess was walking down the hallway with a scowl on her face.  Anyone else would’ve been smart enough to steer clear of the firebrand, but Venus wasn’t just anyone else.

“Mars?!  What the hell happened?!”

“I’m not discussing this with you,” Mars replied in a snarled Lunarian as she continued to walk right by.

Mina grabbed her arm, “Yes you are!  You are going to tell me _everything_!”

“I don’t owe you any answers.”

“Are you the one who put her in the infirmary?!”

A barking laugh that was almost the sound of a heartrending howl escaped Mars as she pulled her arm back.  “If I had intended harm on her she’d be in a grave, not a hospital bed.”

Mars walked out as Venus clenched her hands, wanting so desperately to drag the Martian back and force all the answers out of her, force her to apologize for all the insults she’d hurled at her and her companions, blame her for the reason Jupiter was in the infirmary, but she couldn’t bring herself to.

Because, deep down, she knew that Mars was right.

So instead she wiped her tears as she walked towards the infirmary before the hallway faded as Usagi realized the next memory was taking her to the most familiar place to her of all.

Earth.

Venus looked around frantically, swearing that Serenity had to be on the planet somewhere.  She knew the princess always liked to gaze down at Earth and fantasize about the land and life that existed there, but she didn’t think Serenity would actually disappear it.  If it weren’t for the Moon Kingdom’s alert that someone had used the lunar portal she would’ve figured Serenity was just playing more games hiding in the Moon Palace.

“Princess!  Princess Serenity!  Please, answer me!”

She looked around frantically before she swore she saw a shimmer at the top of the hill.  She rushed to the top, scrambling frantically as she swore a light like that could only come from her princess.  She clawed her way to the top, too impatient to run normally before she finally reached the peak.

“Princess-!”

She covered her mouth before scrambling back down to the bottom of the hill and hiding behind a tree.  She poked her head out to look back to the top, but when no one seemed to look in her direction.  She slumped back against the tree as tears threatened to escape her, the image she’d just witnessed refusing to leave her mind.

Those eyes.

She always dreamed of those eyes, those eyes that sparkled with a light that could only be caused by a pure heart.  She always remembered those eyes in times of hardship, in times of doubt, and always ensured that whenever she saw those eyes they would shine with joy, because those eyes deserved all the love and joy in the world.

And yet, those eyes, weren’t for her anymore.

She sniffed as she got up.  Maybe she was overthinking things, she didn’t even know who that person that Serenity was with was.  She should go back, explain things, return Serenity home, do what a guard captain should do.

But then all she could think of was the way Serenity looked at the man.  She had never known a gaze could be so full of love, but if anyone’s gaze could, it was Serenity’s.  She was a better reincarnation of love than Venus ever could be, Serenity was just overflowing with it.

And Venus was a fool for thinking that love would be for her.

She wiped her eyes as she walked away.  She knew she shouldn’t just leave, but she couldn’t think of a way-

“Venus?  You found her?”

The senshi captain immediately wiped her tears as she offered the newcomer a full smile.  “Yeah.  I guess she found a new friend…” she answered with faltering confidence as a rough hand gripped her shoulder.

“You okay?  Do you need assistance?”

The Venusian shook her head at the Jovian’s heavily accented Lunarian as she pulled the hand off her shoulder.  “I should be fine but, if you wouldn’t mind, could you grab the Princess for me?  She’s with someone up on the hill.  I don’t think he’d hurt her, but I don’t think I would be quite intimidating enough to convince them that Serenity needs to come home.”

“It shall be done,” Jupiter answered simply, cracking her knuckles before rushing up the hill.  Confused screams and irritated shouts echoed across the valley as she watched Jupiter walk down the hill with a very upset Serenity slung over her shoulder.  Venus giggled slightly at the antics before she saw the man that Serenity was with, peering at them from the top of the hill as Venus gave him a glare.  He would not get to have her princess.

Not if she could help it.

“Not like I could really help it.”

Usagi turned back to see Venus walking away as a flash occurred before her eyes.  Showing more images of the Moon Princess continuing to sneak down to Earth to visit the man, ‘Prince Endymion,’ as Serenity would so affectionately refer to him as, much to Venus’ chagrin.  The scene eventually settled on a moment in Serenity’s room, Venus’ thoughts echoing that it was an intervention, but Serenity immediately interpreted it as a team bonding experience where they all spent the night in her room to get to know each other better.  Given the way Serenity described it, Venus didn’t bother to correct her, she figured it’d be less of a headache to claim that then to explain that the reason she set up the meeting was to convince Serenity to leave the Earth alone and focus on the Moon.  Of course, the moment the ‘team bonding’ started Venus immediately regretted it.

“Isn’t Earth sooooo fantastic!  It’s so beautiful and green and so incredible!”

“You only care about the Earth so much because of that Prince you’ve been infatuated with.”

“That’s not true!”  Serenity shouted back at Mars with puffed up cheeks as Venus had to refrain from rolling her eyes.

“Princess, Mars is right.  If this was really about Earth then you’d be more focused on adhering to your duties here.”

“But that’s not fair Venus!”  Serenity whined as she tugged on the senshi’s skirt.  “If Prince Endymion and I combine our powers, we could do so much more for Earth than simply watch it from afar.  We could do so much good there!”

“The Earth is one planet in a solar system of nine, four of which are bound together to this kingdom through the Interplanetary Peace Commission.  If anything, you should focus on the planets involved in that treaty since positive relations between them is paramount for interstellar peace.”

Venus pointedly ignored the raised eyebrow of Mercury who, apparently, found Venus’ rant interesting enough to tear her attention away from her book for just that split moment of nonverbal inquiry.  Serenity was completely oblivious the action of her other friend as she grabbed Venus’ arm.

“But Venus!  You just don’t understand!  Prince Endymion is kind and strong and brave!  Why should we not help him?”

Venus held back a wince as she unintentionally wondered which of those qualities she was lacking in that allowed the Earthen prince such a hold on her princess’ heart.  “We are already helping.  In case you forgot, part of the Moon Kingdom’s Interplanetary Peace Commission was that no one, including the Moon Kingdom citizens, would be allowed to interfere with the affairs of the Earth so that they could evolve naturally.”

“I’m surprised a ditz like you paid attention to those details.”

“I’m willing to learn whatever I need to to best protect the princess, Mars,” Venus answered in a low voice that Mars lightly glared at.  “And I think it’s in your best interest as Moon Princess to adhere to your kingdoms laws.”

“But, but…” Serenity was at a loss for words, her hands slowly releasing Venus’ arms before she placed them gingerly over her heart.  “Doesn’t love have a place in all of this.”

Venus flinched, she desperately hoped that no one noticed as she continued to turn her back away from Serenity.

“Do you even know what love is?”

“Do you?”

Venus clenched her fists as the question rang in her ears.

“You’re the Princess of Venus, right?  The reincarnation of the deity of love?  You may be right, maybe I’m not in love, but if I’m not then can you tell me what love really is?”

Stupid.  Stupid, stupid, stupid!  That’s exactly what love was because that’s exactly what Venus was.  Stupid for getting so carried away in this conversation.  Stupid because she thought she could change the princess’ mind.

Love was stupid because it made her dedicate her life to a person who would never love her back.

Eventually, she turned towards the others, Mercury had set her book aside, listening intently to what would possibly become the greatest discovery to the universe.  Mars was watching also, her gaze had intrigue with a dangerous spark to it that Venus still couldn’t fully trust while Jupiter watched in silence, eyes shining more out of empathy than curiosity like the other two.  Finally she turned to Serenity, whose eyes shone with nothing but hope.  She turned away as she gripped her elbow.  It was so unfair how each of them fit their guardian spirits so perfectly, even with Mars becoming more tempered under Serenity’s influence, she was still very much the embodiment of war, just as Mercury embodied intelligence and Jupiter embodied protection, but Venus-

“I’m not really the reincarnation of love,” she said solemnly as she hugged herself.  “That’s just a Venusian myth to convince the citizens of my importance.  And I don’t know what love is.  I’m sorry I can’t be more help.”

“Oh,” Serenity stated softly as her gaze dropped.  “So, you’ve never heard stories about it?  Never been in love?  Never had dreams of getting married?”

She immediately clenched her eyes shut at the last word as she tried to block it from her mind.  She didn’t want to think back to the world where she would’ve been forced to marry, where her life was simply a pawn to further the status of men surrounding her.  But then those eyes that caught hers before she left for the moon seemed to cut through her thoughts as curiosity filled her mind.  Would she have found love with him if she had stayed on Venus and ran off with him to live happily ever after?  Those clear blue eyes that could cut through the darkness.

They were exactly like Serenity’s.

“No,” Venus answered roughly as she laid back on the bed.  “Sure, I’ve heard stories about it, but I’m not sure what to make of them.  I’ve never been in love, and the value of marriage became lost on me.”

Serenity dropped an ‘oh’ as she began to look defeated before Mercury took over, causing Venus to watch her with inquiry.

Mercury was married?

The thoughts followed her for days afterward, distracting her from practice as Mars would send her the smug smirk she always wore after victory, though it didn’t carry the same arrogance it had before.  It felt like there was something like understanding there but Venus was too distracted to focus too much on it.

Venus wanted to know.

As she stood before a map with Mercury pointing out battle formations she desperately tried to push all the distracting thoughts aside.  She hated when Mercury discussed these battle formations with her instead of Mars, who was far better at strategy, but Venus was the captain they looked to for direction during a battle and she knew she’d have to be aware of their formations so that she could better command their army.

That didn’t mean she enjoyed the work though.

“Venus, are you okay?”

Venus hummed in thought and turned towards the tactician before shaking her head.  “Yeah, I’m fine.  We should stay focused.”

“I find that statement ironic coming from you right now,” Mercury stated as Venus gave a huff.  A light giggle escaped from the tactician as she turned her body towards Venus.  “What’s on your mind?”

Venus turned towards her fellow comrade in arms before releasing a sigh.  “Do you regret leaving your husband behind?”

“That’s what’s been bothering you?”  Mercury answered with a slight smile.

“I just… I’m just curious…”

Mercury turned back to the table as her fingers traced along the table’s grain.  “Well, it feels kinda strange referring to him as my husband since he’s probably married to my sister now.”

“What?!”

Mercury simply laughed.  “You really never paid attention to other people’s cultures or political structures, did you?”

Venus crossed her arms as she pouted.  “I mean, I know you said you weren’t in love with him, but you were still married.”

“Right, and I explained that the marriage was largely political to show the unity of the two Mercurian clans.  However, since I left he’d have to marry the next in line to show that the unity is still there.”

“And you don’t even feel the slightest bit upset?”

Mercury shook her head.  “Nachtvind is a good man, and I lived with him long enough to know he and my sister will work together to guide Mercury to a better future.  There aren’t formal marriages outside of the royal family since it’s more of a political partnership than it is a romantic partnership.  Whether people love or not is up to them, but many Mercurians find it highly impractical.”

Mina hugged one of her elbows, her eyes staring at the map that shifted into familiar gardens outside a palace window.

“I was supposed to get married,” Venus stated in a soft voice.  "My uncle arranged it."

Mercury simply hummed, “I thought Venusians chose who they married.”

“They’re supposed to,” Venus answered with the shake of her head.  “I ran away not too long after.  I couldn’t stand the idea of my love being decided for me but…”

Mercury tilted her head as Venus tried to fight off the tears.  “I can’t help but wonder if I’d actually have someone who’d care about me if I did get married.”  A humorless chuckle escaped her as her gaze roamed the ceiling.  “I mean, look at us, we’ve been living together for months now and I still only know you all by the planets you come from.”

She quickly wiped her tears, trying to avoid sniffling before she felt a warm hand on her shoulder.

“My name is Cienna.”

Venus looked at her friend as if she had just discovered her for the first time in her life as she finished wiping her tears.  “That doesn’t sound Mercurian.”

“Mercurians adopted the use of Earth languages into their naming.  Just another way Mercury tries to flaunt their intellectual prowess, as well as a way to try to curry favor from the Moon Kingdom.”

“Really?”

Cienna hummed and nodded, the soft smile never leaving her face.

“My name is Lorelei.”

“Aw, so you truly are the embodiment of love.”

“That feels so hollow,” Lorelei stated as she diverted her gaze.  “Besides, I doubt you actually believe that.  Wouldn’t the highly intelligent Mercurian think our naming system is highly impractical.”

“I suppose it depends on if I understood the system correctly,” Mercury answered.  “Should I tell you what I’ve heard, or would you rather explain it?”

Venus gave a sigh.  “It’s fine.  I guess I need to start with the Venusian belief that although everyone dies they are also later reborn.  When a child is born they are taken to a Tesla, who through a series of tests with the infant determines who they are the reincarnation of, whether that be a god or a servant to them.  I ended up being divined as Lorelei, the goddess of Love and Beauty, so I got to live in Magellan, the house of the gods with the others who were realized of being divinity.”  Venus gave a scoff as she shook her head.  “That probably sounds ridiculous to you, huh?”

“I think it sounds romantic,” Mercury answered with a smile.  “Of course, like I said earlier, Mercurians find romance impractical.”

Venus released a soft giggle, “Are you one of those Mercurians?”

Mercury shrugged slightly as she turned back to the board.  “In part, I suppose.  I think a part of me was envious too.  Art and poetics weren’t really a part of life in Mercury.  From what I know, Venus is the only planet in the solar system that actually explores elements like stories and art and poetry.  I was always curious, but I could never explore it too deeply without seeming negligent of my role to progress.  If it’s not something that can be used to further Mercury’s scientific progression or political understanding of other planets then it's considered a waste.”

“Maybe it is a waste,” Venus answered softly as she stared blankly ahead.  “I mean, look at how accurate my namesake’s been.”

“I think you have more love then you realize,” Cienna stated with a smile.  “I mean, look at the way you care for all of us.”

Lorelei gave a soft laugh.  “I guess if you say so.  You’re the smart one here.”

Cienna giggled lightly before they both broke down laughing.  It felt so right.

It felt like they were finally becoming a team.

She kept her eyes on Mars though.

Mars’ behavior was changing and Venus wasn’t sure if she should be happy or concerned about it.  She was half-tempted to discuss it with Phobos and Deimos, but she doubted they’d talk to her.

It wasn’t until she watched Mars go into the ceremony hall with the queen and Serenity that she thought the Martian was changing for the better, but she wanted to be sure.  She snuck into the hall, hiding behind one of the pillars as she listened to Mars formally swearing into her duty as a guardian and the vow she gave to the princess.  Once the ceremony was over she immediately sought out Mars.

“You didn’t have to do that you know.”

She was answered with a glare.  “What’s it matter to you what choices I make?  This life is my own.”

“But swearing away your chastity?”

“Coming from the goddess of love who swore it away to a foreign princess?”

“I’m the captain of her guard,” Venus stated in a low voice.  “My entire life has to be devoted to her.  You don’t have that burden.  You still have the right to love.”

A bitter laugh escaped Mars.  “Everything really is just about love for you isn’t it?  I thought I told you there’s no such thing on Mars.”

“But… you’ve had to felt-”

“I didn’t swear my chastity because it means my love, nor does it mean my purity.  As a Martian I have neither of those to give.”

Venus furrowed her brow together.  “So, it was all meaningless?”

“From the perspective of a narrow-minded Venusian like yourself it would seem so.”

Venus fought off the glare as she shook her head.  “What exactly is it you promised the princess then?”

Mars sighed as her shoulders deflated, making her look small to Venus for the first time since they met.  “Chastity was the closest word that I could come up with in Lunarian, but the Martian word for what I meant is daero.  If you were to just translate it literally then daero would just mean body, but when one offers daero to another it means that they give their physical existence to that other person, being owned by that person in body and action.  It’s basically the vow one makes when they make themselves a slave to their conqueror.  That’s all I really am now.”

Venus argued with her on that, that they weren’t slaves to Serenity, but Mars was stubborn, never willing to admit fault.

That would be too similar to admitting defeat.

She wanted to explore it further, but she never seemed to have time with chasing Serenity down and dragging her back to the castle.

It became a regular thing.

And she began to hate everything about the earth.  The trees, the ocean, the abundance of air that wasn’t a smokey yellow.

Everything.

“Venus!  Stop!”

“No!  We’re going back to the moon!”

“Bu-But Lorelei!”

“Using my home name won’t change my mind.”

“Wah, Endymion, help!”

“Um… I think your captain needs you back at the palace?”

“Endymion, whose side are you on?”

“You have to admire a woman with that kind of drive.”

Lorelei’s eyebrows rose as she turned to the source of the voice, taking sight of the Earthen general with long green hair and deep eyes.  She always seemed to notice him every time he was around when Serenity needed to be returned and she couldn’t quite name why.

“If you want I can introduce you to Kunzite and I’ll stay with Endymion.”

Lorelei turned beet red before tightening her grip on Serenity’s wrist.  “As if!  Come on, we’re leaving!”

She dragged her princess back home, returning only a few days later to return the princess as she’d let her gaze linger on the general again.  A part of her wanted to hope that was love.  That that was the reason she could be so flustered at the sight of him.  That if Serenity’s love with Endymion could work, then maybe she could also love Kunzite and finally know what love truly was.

She knew it would never happen.

They’d continue to play this game of cat and mouse as she’d chase down Serenity, teasing her own mind with fantasies of love around the general to give a face to someone she could imagine the feelings she’d had for Serenity with.  To imagine what a love fulfilled would be.

“And yet, despite it all, I was happy.”

Usagi turned back towards the voice as Venus walked towards her.

“As long as my princess was happy, then I could be too.”

She continued to move forward as Usagi gave chase.

“After all, isn’t love just wanting the person you feel it for to be happy?”

“Mina!”

A force pushed her back as she stared at the space around her, now completely black again.  “Where’d everything go?”

“I don’t know,” the Venusian sprite answered.  “This is where I always lose her.  This part of Mina’s heart has been closed off.”

“Mina’s… heart?”  Usagi gingerly wove her fingers through the thick darkness.  “How do we get through?”

The sprite simply shook her head.  “I don’t know.  How does one open a heart?”

Usagi tilted her head before placing her hands to her own heart.  A light glowed from within her chest before it lit up the entire scene as Usagi covered her eyes.

When she opened them again it was chaos.

There were people wearing ancient Earthen armor ravaging the area as Lunarian guards tried desperately to hold them back.  Usagi looked around, trying to walk around the carnage before she tripped as a spear was coming straight at her.  She screamed, watching as the enraged human thrust down as she covered her head.

She heard a grunt behind her.

She opened her eyes, noticing how the spear struck straight through her forehead before waving her hand through the handle and remembering that the memories didn’t affect her.

She didn’t dare look behind her at the person’s true target.

She rose to her feet as she began to run across the battlefield, searching desperately for her friend when an even more familiar face ran past.

“Serenity!  Come back!”

She watched her past self run straight down the field, cutting through the forest that was largely avoided by the warriors as Venus gave chase.  Usagi followed them down, watching as her friend and captain continually tried to call for her princess as she ran further into the forests.  Eventually, they got swarmed, Venus pushing Serenity away from a blow as she managed to block the attack with her sword.

“Lorelei!”

“Serenity!  Get back to the castle!”

“But… But what about Endymion?”

“Forget about him, your people need you, now get back to the castle!”

“I…” The princess paused as Venus pushed back the human, Usagi flinching as she sliced their head off before another took its place.

“This isn’t for debate Serenity!”

“I know,” the princess answered as she rose.  “Which is why I hope you’ll forgive me for not listening.”

“Serenity!”

“I have to make sure he’s safe Lorelei.  I’ll come back.”

“No!  Don’t you dare-!”

Serenity didn’t listen to the rest, running off through the woods as she abandoned her captain to the horde of angry humans.

“Serenity!!!”

She stabbed her sword through the chest of another warrior as she ducked down under the slash of a sword, slashing the legs of the newcomer who screamed as they fell to the ground.  She then grabbed the chain around her waist as she slung it around her.

“Venus Love Chain and Circle!”

A light circled around her before bursting forth and knocking anyone near her back.  She took the moment of reprieve to run back in the direction Serenity had.  It didn’t matter to her if the whole Moon Kingdom burned.

She had to protect Serenity.

She ran as fast as she could until she could finally see them on the edge of the battlefield.  Prince Endymion was protecting the princess, blocking the attacks of the woman who continually tried to break through his defenses.  She could tell they were saying something, but she couldn’t hear any of it.

It wasn’t until she noticed the dark energy that surrounded the woman that Venus realized something was severely wrong.

The woman rose her sword, Endymion readying to block it as her attack cut clean through his weapon and slashed across his chest.

“ENDYMION!!!!!”

She rushed forward, tightening her grip on her sword as she gave a scream.  The woman turned around too late as Venus watched how her eyes widened when her blade thrust through her abdomen.  She dropped the weapon as the woman she’d just slain dissipated into dust before she ran straight for Serenity.

“Princess!”

“Venus!  Get help!  Endymion-!”

“There’s no helping him Serenity, you have to get out of here!”

“NO!!!”  The princess cried as she sobbed, clinging dearly to her love’s corpse as her fingers dug into his lifeless shoulders.  “I can’t leave without him!”

“Serenity!”

She pulled the princess off Endymion.  “Serenity, we have to go!”

She gazed into the princess’ blue eyes, noticing how the empty eyes were honed in on something beyond her.

“I can’t live without him.”

“Sereni-!”

She pushed Venus away as the captain gave a yelp, turning around quickly to admonish the princess before she saw her sword in the princess’ hands.

“Serenity, don’t!”

But it was too late.  Crimson blood flowed across her moon white dress as she thrust the sword straight through her chest and collapsed into Venus’ arms.

“SERENITY!!!”

She crumpled to her knees as she held her lifeless princess, hugging her tightly as she washed her princess in her tears.

“Serenity!  Get up!  You can’t leave me like this!”

She buried her face in the princess’ chest, ignoring how the blood mixed in with her tears as she continued to cry.

“Please don’t leave me like this.”

She continued to cling to the princess as the war raged on, though the only sound she could hear was a pair of heavy footsteps as they walked closer to her.

“You killed Endymion.”

She gripped her princess tighter as the familiar voice berated her.

“Beryl was right.  You people were bringing about the end of the Earth Kingdom.”

“The Earth Kingdom can rot for all I care!”

“And that’s exactly why I’m going to end this!”

He rose his sword as a bittersweet smile crossed Venus’ lips as she stroked her princess’ cheek.

“I can’t live without you Serenity.”

His sword swung down quickly as a final tear escaped the Venusian’s eyes.

“I love you.”

“NO!!!”

Usagi lunged forward trying to stop the attack before she moved right through it.  She turned back around, tears forming in her eyes as she tried to cry out before she noticed that everything was frozen.  The man had his sword right above Mina’s head as all the sounds and chaos of the war unfolding had completely ceased.

“Wha… What happened.”

“What do you think happened?”

She turned around at the sound of the familiar voice.  “Mina!”

A sharp gaze pierced through Usagi as a sudden force blew outward from her friend, causing Usagi to raise her arms in front of her to try to block the force.

“Mina, what’s going on?”

“What does it look like is going on?!”

Usagi flinched.  She never knew that Mina’s voice could be so sharp.  “I-”

“You abandoned me Usagi!”  The harsh voice continued as Usagi noticed a dark aura surrounding her friend.  “I would’ve given you everything, but I just never was good enough for you!  All the times I’d help you sneak out of study sessions, all the times you'd discuss how worried you were about inheriting the Moon Kingdom, all the times you'd cry because of something Mamoru would say or any time he'd leave.  I gave everything to you and you just... you just...”

Tears began to fall down Mina’s cheeks as Usagi approached.  “Mina.”

“Leave Usagi.  Just leave me behind.”

“I can’t do that Mina.”

“Just go away!”

“No!!!”

A white flash glowed around Usagi before it pushed itself outward.  Usagi opened her eyes to find her best friend fallen on the ground before her as she forced herself to rush ahead.  “Mina!  Are you okay?”

A light groan came from the girl as she blinked rapidly.  “Usagi?  What- Where are we?  What’s going on?”

“I-”

“Did you really think it’d be that easy to get rid of me?”

They both turned towards the sound of the voice to find a figure of darkness with the same shape as Mina but with dark flames lapping around them.

“You two really are clueless.”

Mina immediately rose to her feet as she grabbed her chain.  “That’s still better then the state I’m about to leave you in.”

The shadow cackled before it began to grow, no longer looking like a silhouette of Mina as it transformed into monster.  Thorns grew where hands and feet should’ve been as dark roses bloomed above the thorns, with thorned vines connecting the limbs together, intertwining in the middle before rising to the giant rose that bloomed at the crown with smaller vines creating a muzzle as the thorned fangs of the monster were revealed as it shrieked at them.

The battle had just begun.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Welcome back to another installment of Chaotic hearts! So, things have been getting pretty crazy these days, but I'm still trying to keep up with all my fics. On that end, Chaotic hearts will probably only get updated every 3ish months or so, but that's also a very rough guesstimation. Anyways, I absolutely appreciate all of your support and patience! Please remember to comment, kudos and most of all enjoy!

Usagi stared on, the behemoth of thorns and vines continuing to bellow in the forest as Mina held the chain in front of her.

“Mina-”

“You need to leave Usagi.”

Usagi tilted her head momentarily before realizing that Mina was serious.  “But, Mina-!”

“I said leave!”

She slammed her chain against the ground, causing a shockwave that pushed Usagi back as Mina ran off, transforming into her Sailor Venus garb as she left.  Usagi rose to her feet as she noticed the scenes around her changing.  They were suddenly free floating as she watched a building fall down around them, but all the characters on the signs were Chinese and not Japanese as she looked ahead at Venus who was fighting desperately against the monster.  A part of her wondered if this might’ve just been another of Mina’s memories, but she immediately shook that idea out.  Mina wouldn’t have been able to push her away if it were simply a memory.

She rushed forward, watching as Venus leapt over a slash attack to land on the monster's shoulder before whipping her chain against its neck.  The monster screamed before rolling against the ground as Venus deftly jumped off to avoid getting crushed, but the monster was still too fast as it to grab Mina as she descended.  It pulled the senshi captain up, Venus struggling to escape its grip as the monster brought her to its maw and shrieked in her face.

“LEAVE HER ALONE!!!”

Sailor Moon twirled her scepter in her hand as she prepared her attack.  “Sweet Honeymoon- aaah!”

She dodged out of the way as the second claw reached out to grab her while Venus continued to struggle.  “Usagi!  Just leave me here!  You gotta get out!”

“I’m not leaving you Mina!”

“But… you… should!”

The monster turned towards Venus, crushing her in its grip before Venus began to glow.

“Venus Love and Beauty Shock!”

A light exploded from within the monster’s hand as Venus dropped gracefully to the ground.  The two watched as the monster writhed, screaming in pain at the lost appendage as a dark liquid seeped out from the wound.

“I told you I got this Usagi, now go!”

“But Mina-!”

“Usagi, just listen to me!”

“No!  You listen to me and- look out!”

She ran forward and dove at Venus as they rolled away from the giant hand that came crashing at them.  Venus looked up, seeing the monster’s hand completely reformed as it gave a sinister thorny smile before she punched the ground, “Why isn’t anything working!”

“Let me help!”

“No Usagi!”  Venus shouted as she glared at the princess.  “This is my fight Usagi!  It has nothing to do with you, so go away!”

“I’m not leaving you alone with that thing!”  Usagi shouted as she pointed at the monster.  “And if this is your fight then all the more reason for me to be here.  You’re my best friend!”

“But…” tears welled in Venus' eyes before she shook her head furiously.  “Usagi, you shouldn’t still think of me that way.  I fucked up.  You should just leave me behind.  Just… go and be happy.  You deserve it after all.”

“I could never be happy if I couldn’t see you again Mina,” Usagi answered as she held her friend’s hand.  “And I’m just as much at fault for what happened.  I just… I can’t lose you Mina.  You mean so much to me.”

“Usagi…”

She was frozen for a moment.  Staring into the eyes of her princess who owned all of her love before her eyes slowly drifted to her lips and-

“No!’

She clutched her head, clenching her eyes as she shook furiously.  It wasn’t right, it wasn’t right, it wasn’t right!

“Mina…”

She looked up at Usagi who was stepping backwards as Mina began to glow with darkness.  She looked herself over before looking back at the monster who was slowly dissipating into Mina.

“Mina… what-?”

“I’m sorry Usagi,” Mina responded as a flash of the monster’s face cut across her own.  “I just couldn’t stop myself.”

“Mina, no!”

Usagi grabbed her friend by the shoulders but was immediately pushed back by a dark pulse, rolling across the ground as she watched her friend struggle with the darkness that was overwhelming her.  She got up, rushing towards her friend before she was grabbed by behind.

“Just leave Usagi.  I don’t want to hurt you anymore.”

“You’ve never hurt me Mina.”

“Don’t lie!”  The monstrous shout came as thorn-like nails dug into Usagi’s arm.  The girl suppressed the scream as she clutched her hands to Mina’s arms so that she wouldn’t let go.

“I’m not lying Mina,” Usagi answered, trying to keep her voice as calm as possible.  “I’m only hurting when you’re not around.”

“Oh please!”  Mina shouted as her form began to shift.  “I know better than to believe that!  You only care about Mamoru!  I’ll never be as important to you as he is!”

“But you already are!”  Usagi shouted as she struggled to keep her hold on Mina.  “You are both irreplaceable!  Mamo-chan could never be a replacement for you just like you can never be a replacement for him!  You’re both too important to me for me to be content without both of you in my life.”

“U…” She paused, fighting against the monstrous form that was trying to take over.  “Usagi?”

“I love you Mina.”

Tears flowed from Mina’s half transformed figure as she tried to wipe her eyes without scarring her face with her thorned claws before a flash of white light overtook the scene.  Usagi blinked her eyes rapidly.  Panicking when she realized that Mina wasn’t there anymore.  She began to run through the forest calling for her friend winding through the woods before she stumbled back at the battle scene.  She found Mina, still in her Sailor Venus uniform while on the ground next to her was a bloodied and war-stained Venus holding the corpse of her beloved princess.

“I’m so sorry Usagi,” her soft voice wafted as odangoed blonde slowly stepped forward.  “I didn’t want you to see this.  You weren’t supposed to know.”

“Mina…”

She paused, watching the still form of her friend as she slowly approached.  “Mina, it’s okay-”

“It’s _not_ okay, Usagi,” Mina responded, her shoulders looking as tense as her tone.  “I thought I could hide it, and for a while I was pretty sure I did, but… but…”

“Mina…”

She moved forward to hug her friend.  “You don’t have to hide from me.”

The senshi captain turned towards Usagi before releasing a sigh.  “But if I didn’t, then I’d risk your happiness for my own selfishness.  I just couldn’t do that, so I avoided you.”

“But…” Usagi moved away as she watched Mina closely.  “But you’ve never avoided me before.  Why did you have to now?”

“I…” Mina paused.  Yes, she knew she always loved Usagi, but she had never been so tempted to act on it until just a few days ago after that-

“I had a dream…” she said softly.  “Two nights ago.  It just made everything feel so… wrong.”

“Two nights ago?”  Usagi asked as she turned her gaze towards the scene of Venus holding her corpse.  “I started having dreams then too.  Dreams that made me feel like… like I was going to lose everyone.”

“Do you think there’s a connection?  The fact that we were both having strange dreams at the same time?”

“I… I don’t know.”

“I think there might be.”

They turned around, seeing a familiar face as Usagi rushed forward.

“Mamo-chan!”

“What are you doing here?”

He turned towards the bristled blonde before turning his gaze elsewhere.  “I’m not the true Mamoru.  I'm just the part that watches over him.  And I’m here because I need your help.”

Mina simply scoffed as Usagi turned her big blue eyes back to the man.  “Where is he?”

He turned back to Mina who remained turned away before he released a sigh.

“Here.  You’ll probably have better luck finding him than me.”

* * *

 

The Earth was so green, filled with a brilliant rose garden that surrounded a golden castle that was framed by a background of beautiful mountains.

Usagi couldn’t help but feel like she now understood why she’d sneak down there from the Moon Kingdom.

“Endymion!  Endymion, where are you!”

The sound of grunting stopped as Usagi rushed to find a small child, no older than ten, sheathing a wooden sword as he turned towards the castle.  “I’m out here Mama!”

Heavy footsteps rushed towards them as an elegant woman quickly descended the stairs.  “I’m glad I found you!  Another moment later and you would’ve missed your studies.”

“Oh!  I almost forgot!”  The boy exclaimed as he rushed into the castle, the doorways and hallways zooming past Usagi until she showed up in a castle classroom.

“The moon has been a curiosity of humankind since the beginning of recorded history.  Records have found multiple societies with stories surrounding the moon as being a deity, placed in the heavens to watch us from afar and protect us from evil entities that might try to rain down on us from the sky.  There have also been records of the moon being a vengeful deity where, if not appeased through a ritual of human sacrifice, the moon will actually reign down devastation upon the Earth.  Of course, modern technologies have discovered that the moon is simply an inanimate object, much like the Earth, that is simply tethered to our planet by its gravitational pull.”

“But why can’t the moon be a goddess?”

The wizened man tilted his head.  “Why would the moon need to be a goddess?”

“…I don’t know…”  Endymion sighed as he shrunk in his seat.  “But the Moon is so white and beautiful and is always there for the Earth, but it also leaves us with questions.”  He paused while turning his gaze out the window, watching as the moon began to rise in the sunlit sky.  “I wonder what the moon is like.”

“It’s nothing but a barren rock, my prince,” the teacher answered with a sigh.  “And, although I do appreciate your love of mythology and literature, I am concerned that it might be distracting you from the true science behind the world.”

Endymion simply hummed as he leaned into his palm while looking out the window.

He would never stop wondering about the moon.

“Are you okay my prince?  You seem distracted.”

Endymion hummed before shaking his head fervently.  “Yeah.  I’m fine.”

Kunzite simply let a knowing smile escape his lips before he turned his gaze forward.  “Off in space again, my prince?”

Endymion gave a light chuckle as he shook his head.  “I just don’t understand how we can know so little about something we see every day.”

“I suppose I can understand that,” Kunzite answered amicably as he chuckled lightly.  “Human nature doesn’t take uncertainty lightly.”

“No truer words were spoken,” the young Endymion answered with a sigh.  “I just can’t help but feel like… like there’s something important out there.”

Kunzite stopped, Endymion walking on ahead before realizing his companion fell behind as he tilted his head and paused.  Kunzite simply sighed.

“Endymion, you are a fine leader, and I understand my duty to protect you first and foremost, which is why I advise you to quiet your suspicions of the moon.  Others may begin to think of you as mad, and that would be devastating to your position in the court.”

Light blue eyes continued to stare into the dark eyes of the general before Endymion walked over to clasp Kunzite’s shoulder.  “Come now my friend, I’m simply curious.  You can’t tell me you’ve never thought on the stories.”

“When I was much younger, my prince.  But we all must outgrow such fancies eventually.”

Endymion simply sighed before looking out the window to the ever-present moon.

“I suppose you may be right.”

They walked on with Usagi trying to follow, but every time she followed them she always ended up at the exact same window with them repeating that exact same conversation and Endymion taking a final look out at the moon.  Eventually she paused, dropping her arms to her sides as she released a sigh.

This was so pointless.

She gave a soft groan before turning towards the window.  There had to be something she was missing, but she couldn’t think of what.  All that was out there was a moon and some trees in the courtyard and-

Wait a minute, was that… her?

Suddenly the window pushed past her, leading her directly into the courtyard she was looking at as Endymion swung his sword at a practice dummy while a not so subtle Serenity watched secretly from behind one of the pillars.  He continued to swing his sword, feinting and countering an imaginary enemy before he gave a final over head blow as the dust swirled around him at its force.

The dummy remained still with Endymion stopping right before the head of the it.  He wiped his brow, released a sigh and sheathed his sword as he turned towards the moon, tilting his head at the object before he gave a light smile.

“I hope that pleased you for tonight, dear moon.”

A love-struck giggle echoed across the courtyard as Endymion brandished his sword.

“Who goes there?!”

Serenity froze, waiting to see what the human man would do as she clutched the pillar tightly while Endymion could simply stare and stutter.

“A-Are you the moon goddess?”

The question slowly melted away Serenity’s frozen stature as she eased back into a smile with the two of them continuing to stare at each other in that moment until the scene blurred away.  All the colors swirling together until they slowly separated out into the scene of the castle’s gardens.  Serenity wandered the gardens with Endymion watching from one of the tables set up for outdoor entertaining as his four knights interacted with the Moon Princess with varying interest.  Neprhite was the least pleased in her presence, constantly whispering to Endymion that ‘She was dangerous’ and ‘shouldn’t be allowed to roam the castle so freely as she may be a spy' as the prince simply waved off the knight's concerns.  Jadeite wasn’t as vocal about his concerns as Nephrite, but also voiced no enthusiasm at the Moon Princess’ continued presence as he kept one hand firmly gripping the hilt of his sword.  Kunzite claimed indifference to the entire affair, stating that making a threat of one small girl when there were five grown men was absurd as he’d listen into any details Serenity would say about the moon, secretly trying to fill the blank spaces in his knowledge of what was real and what was myth, while Zoisite-

“So the Moon Kingdom is ruled through a matriarchal lineage that sustains the true light of the moon?”

Serenity giggled as a butterfly flew by.  “Of course!  Only a woman of the Silver Millennium can be a protector of the moon’s light, but my mother hasn’t completely explained to me what that light is.  She simply goes on telling me that I’ll understand when I’m older.”

“That’s so fascinating!”  The scholarly man answered as he rubbed his chin.  “And you said there were trees and water on the moon as well?”

“Yes,” Serenity answered in a more somber tone.  “Though it’s all artificially designed.  I don’t completely understand how it works.  Something about the domes over our kingdom that can create wind and allow us to create trees and other things.  Lunarians have always been enraptured by Earth’s beauty so our societies try to resemble as much of the Earth as possible.”

“Incredible!  Have any others from the moon come and visited Earth?”

“I’m sure there have been, but I wouldn’t know of them.  After all, when you see a planet so round and blue and beautiful, how could you not come down to experience it?”

Zoisite gave a laugh as Serenity giggled before turning her gaze back to Endymion’s as her smile softened.  The edges of Endymion’s lips curled lightly before Zoisite broke through Serenity’s attention to give another inquiry about life on the moon as Kunzite laughed gently beside him.

“I’m surprised you aren’t more like Zoisite.  Asking the princess about every detail of her life to set in front of you to examine.”

Endymion simply gave a shrug as he watched how Serenity’s eyes lit up every time she laughed.  “It’s funny, for as much time as I spent wondering about the moon and all the questions I had about them, they all seem irrelevant now.  Just having her here… it feels like everything I’ve been looking for has simply arrived.”

Kunzite gave a knowing smirk before turning his gaze to where Endymion’s had fallen.

“I truly hope for that to be the case.”

They left Usagi behind, continuing to walk forward before the sound of clashing metal forced her to turn her attention behind her.

Nephrite had his sword clashed against Endymion’s, both gritting their teeth as they fought to have the upper hand before a smirk crossed the prince’s face.  He stepped to the side to allow Nephrite’s momentum to push him forward before Endymion tripped the knight.  Nephrite fell forward, turning to face his opponent before the sharp end of a blade was floating before his eyes.

“You know, in the battlefield, forward isn’t the only direction to go.”

The man offered a groan as he knocked the sword away.  “Go try telling that to that brute you let wander around here.”

The prince simply offered a laugh as he shook his head.  “If you mean Jupiter then I can try, although I don’t think she’s as well-versed in Latin as the others.”

“It doesn’t matter what language she speaks,” the man answered as he brushed himself off.  “She’ll learn I’m someone to be reckoned with.”

“Why are you so sour about this Nephrite?”  The prince asked as he sheathed his blade.  “You’re usually so carefree.”

“How can I not care about this though?”

He gave Endymion a stern look that was simply returned with a confused one, so he sighed and shook his head.

“This just feels like too much.  There are people on other planets now.  All with their own kingdoms.  And as much as I want to believe that nothing will come of it, I can’t stop this feeling and…”

He paused, shaking his head.  “I had never met an enemy I couldn’t defeat.  And she tossed me aside as if I was nothing.”

Endymion knelt down, offering a warm smile to his friend as he extended a hand.  “I know I’d never beat you in battle if you weren’t so unsettled.  It’s why I know I can trust you to keep us safe.  Because when we’re truly at war you set aside all concerns and fight with a free, unconquerable spirit.”

The man simply rolled his eyes before giving a laugh.  “Is Zoisite having you recite his poetry excerpts now?”

“I am simply speaking the truth.”

The man released a final chuckle before taking the offered hand.  “Alright, let’s do one more spar and then get to the mead hall.  After all, I’m gunna need some ale to celebrate my victory.”

Endymion gave a smirk as he pulled out his sword.  “We shall see.”

The two swords clashed in a brilliant flash that caused Usagi blink before realizing she was in a new space.  She looked around, noting the massive walls of books as Endymion sat at one of the tables before a familiar face came to speak with him.

“H-hello my prince.”

Endymion looked up before allowing a warm smile to cross his face.  “Aw, good evening Jadeite.  Come to peruse the library?”

“Not really no,” the man answered quickly as he hurriedly took a seat.  “Actually, I was wondering if we could discuss something.”

The prince tilted his head before putting his book aside.  “What can I help you with?”

“Well… since you’ve been consorting with Princess Serenity, I’ve been noticing her… guardians… coming here frequently as well.”

“They simply come down here to retrieve Serenity.  They’re no threat to us.”

“I am well aware of that.  It’s just that there’s something that interests me about… well… one of them.”

Endymion rested his chin in his palm as he leaned forward in intrigue.  “You truly don’t consider them a threat?”

“Well, I did at first,” Jadeite quickly defended.  “I mean, they come from other planets and have strange powers… and even just talking about this seems like sheer lunacy, but…”

Endymion waited, watching how the young man wobbled his head as he weighed out the words in his mind.  “Well, how did you and the princess get to know each other?”

“Us?”  Endymion leaned back, scratching the back of his head as he adopted a sheepish expression.  “I… I don’t know.  She just showed up while I was training and then we started talking.”

“Really?  That’s it?  There wasn’t any dashing rescue as she was wandering around the forest, or a chase scene of her being embarrassed at being caught or anything?”

“You’ve been reading far too many fictional novels here, my friend.  I apologize to say that reality can be quite dull sometimes.”

The blonde hummed, leaning back in his chair as he stared blankly at the ground by his feet.

“Who are you asking after anyways?”

“W-What?!”

A soft smirk scratched at the edge of Endymion’s face.  “I can tell you’re asking for someone you have an interest in.  Mind telling me who?”

The man went silent.  Continuing instead to stare at the ground as Endymion released a sigh.

“I suppose it’s not my place to pry for such-”

“It’s Mars.”

Endymion immediately snapped his gaze back to Jadeite with an expression that resembled a mix of concern and disbelief.

“I know it may seem strange, but… I just can’t stop thinking about her.”

“Sailor Mars is an extremely dangerous individual.”

“I thought you said none of them were a threat.”

“They aren’t,” Endymion answered, maintaining a straight face before releasing a sigh.  “Jadeite, the moon is a different place from here, and the other planets are even more different from us then the moon.  I don’t know all the details, but Mars is a place of absolute war and Sailor Mars embodies all of that.”

“I know Endymion, Zoisite explained that to me already,” Jadeite answered as he leaned into the palm of his hand.  “But, for someone raised in a place of absolute cruelty to become part of the Moon Kingdom’s guard must mean something, right?  There has to be more to her than just dominion and conquest.”

“If there is then Sailor Mars would never reveal it, especially not to one of us.  We’re too distant from where they are with a very limited understanding of their background.  Also, there are still members amongst the knights who are wary of their presence.”

“You don’t have to say that like we don’t all know it’s Nephrite,” Jadeite answered with the roll of his eyes.  “But, if we can prove we aren’t enemies, then she’s sure to open up to us too, right?”

Endymion paused to study his friend, so full of youthful innocence that belied the incredible cunning he could exemplify on any given moment.  Endymion gripped his shoulder tightly as he locked gazes with the blonde.  “Jadeite, you are a dear friend of mine, and if you wish to pursue Sailor Mars I am willing to support you as I can, but I implore you to also be smart about it.  Understand that her customs are very different from ours and take nothing she says to heart.  Although I don’t believe she means what she says, she can come off as incredibly cruel and I don’t want you getting hurt.”

Jadeite rolled his eyes.  “You concern yourself too much.  I’m looking to know her better, not ask for her hand in marriage.”

Endymion shook his head as he grabbed his book.  “Just be careful.  I know she’s a woman with a tongue as sharp as her blade.”

“Well,” Jadeite answered as he stretched from his spot.  “I wouldn’t find her so interesting if she were dull.”

Endymion chuckled as he shook his head.  “Now I think I’m more worried that you’ll actually get through to her.  I’m scared to think of what you’d do together.”

“Well, you’ll just have to wait for that to develop, won’t you?”

Endymion raised an eyebrow as Jadeite walked away, he watched after his youngest knight before shaking his head.  Jadeite was manipulative and charismatic, which was a scary combination for someone so young and Endymion often wondered why he had chosen to become another knight in his guard instead of making a name for himself as the commander of a platoon, but deep down he knew the answer.  The bond between him and his four friends was too strong to pull away from, but he was okay with that.

It simply meant there was no one else he'd trust so fully with his life.

“It’s your move, my prince.”

“Huh?”  Endymion shook his head lightly, turning back to Zoisite who was hiding a soft giggle.

“It’s your move.”

Endymion immediately tilted his head down towards the table where an entire war was laid out before him with white and black figures on white and black tiles preparing for an inevitable clash that would leave both sides devastated.

He couldn’t stop the impending feeling of dread.

“Are you okay my prince?  You’re paling.”

He turned his eyes back to his knight before waving off the concern.  “I’m fine.  I’m just thinking.”

“Oh?”  Endymion turned back to Zoisite who was resting his chin in his palm as his eyes lit with curiosity.  “What about?”

He internally cursed at himself.  Endymion knew better than to use those words in front of Zoisite.  If he refused to answer Zoisite would pester him, constantly guessing and weighing the plausibility of each hypothesized thought as being Endymion’s actual thought until he satisfied himself with whichever won as most plausible and providing solutions to that thought, but also the others just in case he miscalculated what Endymion’s true thoughts were.

Which was a consequence Endymion was not ready to face.

“I… does it feel like things are changing?”

“Well, what do you mean,” Zoisite answered with a light chuckle.  “Of course things are changing.  We live in a world that’s always changing, otherwise we’d simply be frozen in time.”

“You know I know better than that Zoisite,” Endymion answered with an eye roll.  “I just… I can’t stop feeling like something big is coming.”

“A sense of foreboding?”

“Very much so,” Endymion answered as he stared down at the chess pieces.  “It’s just been lingering in my mind recently that something big is about to happen.”

“You mean beyond meeting a princess from the moon and realizing that all the planets in our solar system are inhabited with kingdoms all of their own?”

Endymion released a light chuckle at the answer.  “Yes, beyond all that.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about it,” Zoisite answered.  “We have only been in contact with our new interstellar friends for a few months now.  Any discovery as incredible as that is bound to create uncertainty, even in the most confident of men.”

Endymion hummed in thought as he stared back at the board, noticing the lack of white knights on his side and the black queen leaving him in check.  The only move he could make to continue the game would leave the white queen vulnerable to Zoisite’s next attack.

“I’m losing you again.”

“I’m simply thinking upon your answer,” Endymion offered a light smile as he straightened in his seat.  “And I’ve decided you’re right.”

“No you didn’t,” Zoisite answered with a smug smile.  “You’re simply saying that to convince me not to press further.”

“Well, did it work?”

Endymion raised an eyebrow to his knight who simply raised a laugh.

“Perhaps for now,” Zoisite answered softly.  “But I’ll be sure to find out eventually.”

“I know you will,” Endymion answered with a soft smile.  “In any case, I believe you’ve got me caught.  Would you like to start a new game?”

Zoisite tilted his head in slight bafflement, giving a skeptical expression before giving his answer in a suspicious tone.  “I suppose if you desire.”

They rearranged the pieces to their natural starting places as darkness swirled from the black pieces, distorting the room until it went completely dark as Usagi watched quietly.  She walked over to the nearest shadow wall as she reached into her heart to try to open it, but when she tried the light wouldn't reach, simply sparkling around Usagi without touching the darkness.

“What just happened?!”

Usagi turned towards Mina’s panicked voice.  “We must’ve found the part of his heart he doesn’t want us to see.”

Mina’s eyes widened before she turned her gaze away.  “Did… Did I lock you out too?”

“I…” Usagi paused as she hugged one of her elbows.  “I guess you did.  Your heart was blocked off too, but you opened it up for me.”

“Is Mamoru-san not opening up for you?”

Usagi shook her head.  “For you I was able to find the place where our hearts connect in my own,  but now I can’t find Mamo-chan’s.”

“Then we’re screwed,” Mina answered frustratedly as she slammed her fist against the wall.  “If Mamoru-san’s not letting you in then there’s no way we’re getting further.”

“But we have to keep going Mina!  Please, I don’t know what’s going on, but whatever it is must be important!”

“Well what am I supposed to do?!”

Usagi grabbed both of Mina’s hands before locking their gazes.  “Reach out with your heart.  I’ll try to find you, and together we’ll see if we can bring Mamo-chan back into ours.”

Mina released a sigh as she felt a small light within her glow.

“If you say so.”

_FLASH_

Usagi opened her eyes, looking around as she immediately took in the castle courtyard only to see a very angry Endymion face to face with a very stern looking general.

“Get out of my way Kunzite!”

“I apologize my prince,” Kunzite answered as he tightened his grip on his sword.  “But my queen has demanded that you remain here.”

“So you admit your treachery,” Endymion snarled as he glared at his opponent.

“I do this for the good of the Earth.”

“You do this for nothing!”

Endymion screamed as he waved his sword for an overhead strike as Kunzite glowed in darkness to drive the prince back.  Endymion picked himself up, spitting out blood as Kunzite continued to watch.

“You don’t have the power to stop me.”

Endymion glared before spotting a white glow beyond Kunzite and sheathing his sword.

“And you don’t have the will to stop _me_.”

He bolted towards the nearest wall before he leapt over, with Kunzite close on his heels before he dashed into the battlefield, deftly fighting his way through as he followed where the white light was glowing.

“Endymion!”

He turned to his side before being engulfed in the embrace of Princess Serenity.  She hugged him tightly as he quickly returned the embrace before separating them.

“What are you doing here?!  It isn’t safe!”

“Then it’s not safe for you either!  I can’t just abandon you!”

“Serenity, I-”

His eyes flashed forward as he pushed the princess out of the way before his sword clanged against an incoming blade.  The woman snarled as she brought back her blade, making another diagonal slash that Endymion blocked once again as she growled.

“Prince, will you be a traitor to Earth?  This is all for Earth’s prosperity!”

Endymion blocked another strike as he winced slightly from the force.  “Stop!  Lay down your arms!  Stop this futile war!”

Suddenly the woman began to laugh as darkness began to surround her.  She lifted her blade before bringing it down on the prince as darkness overtook the scene, leaving everything looking a sickly shade of purple as all the people began to disappear.

“Usagi, what’s happening?”

Usagi couldn’t answer.  Instead she remained frozen in place as she stared at the spot where Endymion died while Mina rushed to her side.

“Usagi!”

“I should’ve been able to save him.”

“Don’t say that Usagi!  It wasn’t your fault!”

“Of course it was!”  Usagi shouted as she turned towards Mina.  “I should’ve used the Legendary Silver Crystal! I should’ve _known_ how to use it!  I should’ve had it!”

“Usagi?”

The girl in question looked at Mina as darkness glowed around her before she smiled.

“But now I have all the power.”

Sailor Venus grabbed Sailor Moon and hugged her tightly.  “Whoever you are, stop messing with my friend!”

A light flashed from within Mina as she clenched her eyes tight, letting her light bathe her friend and all that surrounded them as she squeezed Usagi tight.  She wasn’t going to lose her!

Suddenly Sailor Moon went slack.  Mina immediately opened her eyes as she looked her friend over.

“Usagi?!”

Sailor Moon’s head rolled before she nodded her eyes open.  “Mina-P?”

Mina released a sigh of relief as she hugged Usagi again, slowly opening her eyes as a large black dragon glared down at her before it spat a stream of fire towards her.  She quickly grabbed Usagi’s wrist, causing the girl to yelp as Mina dragged her out of the way, diving just in the nick of time.  She rolled on the ground and landed in a crouch facing the creature as Usagi simply stumbled and fell to the ground, shaking her head of the disorientation before turning towards her friend.

“Mina, what-!”

“Usagi, get out of here!”

“But-!”

Another fireball came their way as Mina swirled her chain to redirect the flames around them.

“I’ll take care of this Usagi!”

“And I’m going to help you Mina!  Mamo-chan’s still in here somewhere!”

“I’ll find him for you-”

“No!  I’m staying here and fighting so quit trying to push me away!”

“Usa-!”  Sailor Venus turned around, noting the mix of determination and hurt that was etched into Sailor Moon’s face.  She always seemed to have a knack for making Usagi upset during the worst of times.  She released a sigh before returning to her fighting stance.  “I can never win against you.”

Sailor Moon gave a light giggle before noticing the dragon readying another fire blast.  “You ready for this?”

Venus offered a humming nod before the blast of flames came barreling towards them.

“Scramble!”

They both sidestepped the blast, running on opposite sides of the flaming wall with Venus moving faster towards the monster.  The dragon snapped its maw at Venus who leapt over its jaws, flipping in the air to strike the dragon multiple times with her chain as Sailor Moon snuck to its underbelly.  She flipped her scepter in her hand multiple times as white lights emanated from the weapon and cut into the dragon’s legs as she slashed its appendages.

The dragon howled in pain before turning towards Sailor Moon and kicking back their hind leg.  Sailor Moon dove out of the way, rolling across the floor and landing in a crouch before the dragon’s tail slammed into her and sent her flying.

“USAGI!!!”

Mina began to rush forward before the dragon swung its head into her, forcing her into the air as she tried to recover only to find herself falling towards the dragon’s open jaw.

“Sweet Honeymoon Therapy Kiss!”

A ray of white light shot out of Sailor Moon’s scepter as the dragon howled at the attack as Venus rotated through the air, transforming her chain into a sword and slicing into the dragon’s neck as she fell.  She landed on her feet and ran towards Sailor Moon as the dragon howled in pain.

“Usagi!  Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, but why didn’t my attack finish it?”

The dragon sent another flurry of flames in their direction as Venus shoved Sailor Moon out of the way before continuing her assault, rushing forward and blocking the dragon’s claw with her blade as she snarled at the dragon.

“I won’t let you hurt her!”

She pushed back the claw and spun to slash her blade across the dragon’s chest, causing it to give another howl before slamming its paw onto Venus, pinning her to the ground as she struggled to escape.  The dragon turned to look down at Venus, snarling into her face as she recoiled from it.

“HEY!!!”

The dragon was struck by a short succession of silver sparkles before turning towards Sailor Moon.

“Aren’t you forgetting about me?!”

The dragon put more pressure on Venus, causing her to scream as Sailor Moon swung her scepter and released its power.

“Sweet Honeymoon Therapy Kiss!”

The white ray exploded out of her rod as the dragon responded with a breath of fire, fighting to overtake Sailor Moon’s attack as the two forces collided.  Sailor Moon stumbled back, trying to hold the power of her attack as the dragon’s flame continued to bombard her.  She turned her gaze back towards the dragon, Venus pinned by its grip as it continued to bellow at her.  She couldn’t give up!

“I won’t let you win!”

A light glowed in her chest as it flowed into her scepter.

“Silver Heart Moon Eclipse!”

She swung her scepter again as the ray sliced straight through the flames and shot through the dragon, causing its form to distort until it exploded from the force.  Darkness rained down as Venus slowly rose before seeing the shocked face on her friend.

“Mamo-chan?”

Venus’ eyes widened before she turned around.  There stood Mamoru though still alit in darkness and wearing the armor he wore as Prince Endymion, but the mask and cape he wore as Tuxedo Mask.  He looked at the two of them before turning away quickly and running off.

“Mamo-chan!  Wait!”

Sailor Moon took off after him as Venus hurried up to her feet.

“Sailor Moon!  Hold up!”

She gave chase, surprised when she realized that she was completely unable to even keep pace with Sailor Moon when she had always been the fastest of all the sailor senshi.  She pushed that thought aside as she tried to force herself faster only for Sailor Moon to disappear entirely inside the blank space.  Venus skidded to a halt as she looked around.

“Usagi?!  Usagi, where are you?!”

“Don’t try to act so concerned.”

Venus immediately pivoted, summoning her chain as she snarled at the newcomer.

“Mamoru-san.”

He gave a bittersweet smirk before he brandished his sword with a flurry.  “Let’s settle this.  Once and for all.”

“Don’t mind if I do!”

Venus ran forward, flinging her chain around her head before she cried out.

“Venus Love and Beauty Shock!”

Mamoru remained unfazed, simply swinging his sword over his head and swinging it down to return right in front of him as a shockwave surrounded him and pushed Venus back.  She skidded on the ground before rolling backwards back onto her feet.  She spun the chain over her head and lashed it outward.

“Venus Love Chain and Circle!”

Mamoru blocked the attack with his sword as the chain wrapped tightly around the blade before she tugged him forward.  He stumbled towards Venus as she delivered a high kick to his temple.  He staggered from the force with Venus transforming her chain into a blade and swinging down onto Mamoru’s head that he managed to block just in time.  He began to return the favor, pushing back against Venus’ sword as she stumbled back, barely managing to block the horizontal slash that Mamoru prepared next.  She stumbled aside into a roll, utilizing her momentum to slide to Mamoru’s side and send a rising overhead strike his way.  Mamoru blocked the attack, sliding under the blade before spinning into a sliding slash towards Mina’s torso.  She dove out of the way, rolling across the ground to regain some distance.

“Tuxedo La Smoking Bomber!”

“Venus Love and Beauty Shock!”

A gust of wind blew past Mamoru’s form as Venus’s blade returned to a chain as she cut past the air slashes, whipping her chain at an inhuman speed to eliminate the force before running forward as her blade began to glow.

“I’m finishing this!”

“Come on!  Give it your best shot!”

She ran forward with a battle cry before swinging the blade over her head.

“Venus Shining Beauty Slash!”

She cut right through Mamoru’s blade, causing him to look down at the broken sword before tossing the hilt.

“Go ahead and finish it.”

She stared on at him, his eyes closed, head raised and arms wide open to welcome the death that she would deliver.

CLAANG

Mamoru opened his eyes, staring at the fallen blade that clattered right beside him.

“I can’t,” Mina stated simply as she crumpled to the ground.  “I can’t kill you.”

Mamoru stood still, watching her for a moment before his shaky voice echoed in the empty space.

“Why?”

Mina didn’t respond.  She simply hugged her knees and shook her head causing Mamoru to growl.  He grabbed her by the collar, forced her up and screamed in her face.

“Why won’t you kill me!”

She knocked his hands away before offering her own snarl.  “Why do you care if I do or not?!”

“Quit mocking me!  What reason do I have to live when I’m so utterly useless!  I should just die and stay dead so that I’m not such a liability to all of you!”

“Do you really think that’ll make anything better?!”

“Why not?  I don’t have any powers like you and the other senshi.  What point is there in me coming back if I can’t even protect her!”

“Usagi doesn’t need anyone to protect her and you know it!”

Mamoru stepped back, trying to find an argument against Mina’s reason but none could be found.

“Besides, I don’t care about the fact that I have the power to summon a chain, or advanced swordsmanship knowledge or any of that.  It didn’t do me any good when Usagi used my own weapon to kill herself, and she even did it twice.  Honestly, I wish I had the power you did.”

“And what power is that?”

Mina hugged her knees again, hiding her face in her arms as her eyes barely peaked over them.

“You have the power to make her happy.”

Mamoru’s eyes widened before looking back down to the sword Mina had dropped.

“You may not see it for yourself, but Usagi is never her usual self unless you’re around.  And every time you leave, every time you miss a call or every time an enemy gets you I have to worry.  Because I don’t have the same power you do to keep her happy.”

Tears dropped down Mina’s cheeks as she struggled to wipe them away.

“I don’t have the power to convince her that life still has meaning when you’re not there.   I just sit by and watch her struggle, powerless to do anything about it.”

Silence settled over the two before Mamoru finally took a seat.

“I’m sorry.”

A humorless chuckle escaped him as he shook his head.  “This was all so stupid.  I just- I just always end up dying or getting captured or incapacitated.  I have no power when you guys need me and then when I saw you and Usako-”

He shook his head as his eyes shimmered with unshed tears.  “I decided that there really isn’t anything I had to offer her.”

Mina turned to look at the reborn prince, the man who had died more times for Serenity than anyone else.  She gave a sigh before burying her face in her arms.

“Mamoru-san, I don’t expect to ever be forgiven, but… please… I beg you to please forgive Usagi for this.  It wasn’t her fault.”

Mamoru turned towards Mina as he quirked a brow.

“Why would you ask that of me when it hurts you so much?”

“Because… it’s like I said,” Mina rose out of her crumpled form to look towards the space above her.  “She’s not her usual self without you.  And as much as I hate it when you’re here because you remind me of what I can’t have, I hate it a thousand times more when your gone because all of Usagi’s joy goes with you.”

A firm hand rested on Mina’s shoulder as she turned to a warm smile.  “You really just want the best for Usako, don’t you?”

Mina turned towards him before offering a soft smile of her own.  “I’m the captain of her guard.  It’s my job to give her the world and i know you're the one who can give it to her.”

Mamoru chuckled slightly as Mina released a light chuckle of her own.  It was peaceful for a moment and Mina couldn’t help but get the sense that things were going to be alright.

“Mamo-chan!”

Both heads turned towards the voice as both moved to rise from their spot before Mina stopped herself.

“Usako!”

Mamoru ran towards Usagi, embracing her deeply as Usagi melted into his embrace, spouting incoherent apologies as Mamoru offered soft consolations while Mina watched from afar before sighing.  She leaned back, looking up at the blank space above her as a light smile graced her face.

Things were going to be alright.

She was going to make sure of it.


End file.
